Preview: Kerala Blasters look to put campaign back on track against Mumbai City FC at home

The Islanders will want revenge after losing both meetings last season.

Kerala Blasters will host Mumbai City FC at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Kochi on October 28. The Blasters kicked-off their ISL 2022-23 campaign with a 3-1 win against East Bengal, but have suffered two consecutive losses against ATK Mohun Bagan and Odisha FC respectively. The Islanders, on the other hand, won a match and drew two in their three matches. 

Ivan Vukomanovic said that his side will practice more and learn from the mistakes they have made so far. Mumbai City coach Des Buckingham will hope to get the three important points.

The Stakes

Kerala Blasters

Head coach Ivan Vukomanaovic was unhappy with their last game against Odisha FC after losing the game by a 2-1 margin. He said that his side will look more into the mistakes they made in the defeat. He believes his side will aim for nothing but a win in their third home match.

However, despite the win in the campaign opener, Vukomanovic will be aware of his side’s two back-to-back losses.

Mumbai City FC

The Islanders are eyeing a win in their second away game of the season. Mumbai City will be traveling to Kochi after a disappointing draw with the League Shield Winners Jamshedpur FC in their previous clash.

Mumbai haven’t faced a single defeat in the ongoing season as they started their campaign with a draw over defending champions Hyderabad FC and have won against Odisha FC in their second match.

Team News

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

Head-to-Head

Mumbai City FC and Kerala Blasters have met on 16 occasions so far. MCFC has won six games, while KBFC has managed to win four. Six matches have ended in a draw. Ivan Vukomanovic's side won both league meetings last season in stunning fashion.

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, Ivan Kaliuzhnyi.

Mumbai City FC Predicted XI:  Phurba Lachenpa (GK); Rahul Bheke, Rostyn Griffiths, Mehtab Singh, Sanjeev Stalin; Ahmed Jahouh, Apuia Ralte, Lallianzuala Chhangte, Alberto Noguera, Bipin Singh; Greg Stewart.

Man to Watch

Sahal Abdul Samad (Kerala Blasters)

Sahal Abdul Samad plays as a midfielder for Kerala Blasters and the India national team. The Indian international primarily plays as an attacking midfielder. He has shown an excellent performance in Kerala Blasters’ last match against Odisha FC despite their 2-1 loss.

The 25-year-old, Shal who is one of the prominent players of the Kochi-based club became the joint-second highest Indian goalscorer in ISL last season.

Mehtab Singh (Mumbai City FC)

Mehtab Singh plays as a centre-back for Mumbai City. He joined the Islanders in 2020. He was part of the team who won both the League Shield and league title in the 2020-21 season. With his outstanding performance he has won two hero of the match award from three games in the ongoing season.

Did You Know?

• Kerala Blasters beat Mumbai City FC in both league meetings last season.
• Mumbai City FC are the first club to win both the ISL title and League Winners Shield (2020-21)
• Mumbai City are the first club from India to win an AFC Champions League (ACL) match

 Telecast

The live telecast of Kerala Blasters vs Mumbai City FC 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 Friday.