Preview: High-flying Kerala Blasters aim to end winless streak against ATK Mohun Bagan

The Mariners will play their first ISL match in Kochi.

Kerala Blasters will host ATK Mohun Bagan FC at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Kochi on October 16. The Blasters kick-off their campaign in ISL 2022-23 season with a 3-1 win against East Bengal SC. The Mariners, on the other hand, were shocked at home in a 1-2 defeat to Chennaiyin FC.

Ivan Vukomanovic will want his players to be more expressive in front of goal. ATKMB coach Juan Ferrando, on the other, will hope his side find their scoring boots finally. Both teams will aim to elevate themselves and qualify for the playoffs just like last season.

The Stakes

Kerala Blasters FC

Head coach Ivan Vukomanaovic expressed his happiness over the team's effort in the magnificent win over East Bengal in the campaign opener. He had special praise for the new foreign signing Ivan Kalyuzhnyi, who scored a match-winning brace in that victory. Ivan believes his side will continue to win the matches and surprise football fans all over the world.

However, despite the massive win over one-half of Kolkata in their first match, Vukomanovic will be aware of his side's winless streak against the Mariners. Kerala Blasters are yet to win against ATK Mohun Bagan in four meetings, three of those have been defeats.

ATK Mohun Bagan

The Mariners are eyeing their maidein win in the season having gone down to Chennayin FC in their first game at home. Head coach Juan Ferrando believed in his players and backed them to fight back harder in their first away match of the season.

ATK Mohun Bagan failed to hold on to a lead against Chennaiyin FC and have struggled to find the net consistently. They had 15 shots against the Machans, but scored just once.

Team News

Both teams did not report any injury concerns. Neither did the respective head coaches updated about any concerns in the pre-match press conference.

Head-to-Head

ATK Mohun Bagan and Kerala Blasters have met on four occasions ever since the Mariners entered the ISL. ATK Mohun Bagan have won three of those matches, while one ended in draw. Ivan Vukomanovic's men lost the first meeting 4-2 last season.

Possible Line-ups

Kerala Blasters Predicted XI: Prabhsukhan Gill (GK); Harmanjot Khabra, Marko Leskovic, Hormipam Ruivah, Jessel Carneiro; Puitea, Jeakson Singh, Sahal Abdul Samad, Adrian Luna, Dimitrios Diamantakos, Apostolos Giannou

ATK Mohun Bagan Predicted XI: Vishal Kaith (GK);Pritam Kotal, Brendan Hamill, Subhasish Bose; Manvir Singh, Deepak Tangri, Joni Kauko, Ashique Kuruniyan; Liston Colaco, Hugo Boumous, Dimitri Petratos

Man to Watch

Ivan Kalyuzhnyi (Kerala Blasters)

The Ukrainian midfielder who joined KBFC on loan from Ukrainian Premier League club Oleksandriya. He was brilliant in his debut match against East Bengal in the season opener. Ivan scored a brace after coming from the bench in the 79th minute. His debut goal came after just three minutes. The 24-year-old then doubled his tally seven minutes later with a left-footed volley, helping his side to a 3-1 win. He was named the Hero of the Match for his performance.

Ashique Kuruniyan (ATK Mohun Bagan)

The Indian international plays as a winger for ATK Mohun Bagan. He joined the club this summer from Bengaluru FC. Ashique, who had showcased impressive form in ISL over the years, made his debut for the Mariners in the first game itself. If he plays as a left wingback, like the last game, Ashique will have a big task against Adrian Luna.

Did You Know?

• Kerala Blasters are winless against ATK Mohun Bagan. Both teams have faced each other four times in history. ATKMB have won three of those meetings.
• This will be the first time ATK Mohun Bagan play an ISL match in Kochi. Since their inception, they have only played KBFC away in the bio-bubble.
• Manvir Singh is yet to miss a game for ATK Mohun Bagan

Telecast

The live telecast of Kerala Blasters vs ATK Mohun Bagan will be available on the Star Sports Network. The live stream of the fixture can be viewed on Disney+HotStar and JioTV. Kick-off is at 7:30 PM on Sunday.