Preview : Jamshedpur FC, East Bengal clash to elevate themselves

Both teams find themselves in the bottom half of the ISL table.

Jamshedpur FC will be desperate to get back to action and do justice to their last season’s dream run when they take on a resurgent East Bengal in the 2022-23 Indian Super League (ISL) at the JRD Tata Sports Complex on Sunday.

Jamshedpur last featured in a 3-1 loss against Chennaiyin FC. The Men of Steel are sitting a place below the Red & Gold brigade and a win can push them higher. Meanwhile, East Bengal suffered a disastrous loss against Odisha FC after taking a 2-0 lead. With both their victories coming away from home, the Red & Golds will be aiming all three points in Sunday's clash!

The Stakes

Jamshedpur FC

The team’s 1-3 loss to Chennaiyin FC was a rather disappointing result, and it made it three losses in a row. While they initially came back to score an equalizer through Ishan Pandita’s worldie, two spectacular goals in the last 15 minutes meant a victory for the Marina Machans. Nonetheless, they displayed a slightly better attacking performance from their previous game against Hyderabad FC. Harry Sawyer again excelled in set-pieces and long balls and registered an assist from one of them for Pandita’s goal.

Pandita’s combination alongside Boris Singh upfront also looked promising with the latter showing signs of resilience. However, the Men of Steel felt the absence of Daniel Chima in attack. Without the Nigerian, they struggled to create chances. And therefore, just as speculated, picking the right mix of players in attack will be Aidy Boothroyd’s toughest challenge now.

Either way, the English tactician will look forward to regrouping the squad with a positive result against East Bengal.

East Bengal

Similar to Jamshedpur FC, the Red & Golds haven’t had ideal results so far either. While they lost 2-4 against Odisha FC, they won 1-0 against Simon Grayson’s Bengaluru FC in the previous game. Stephen Constantine’s men displayed a mature performance in the second half against the Blues. 

Nonetheless, their defensive line – specifically the youngsters have displayed a commendable performance with leader Ivan Gonzalez at the back. It has been a major improvement from their past two seasons and they would look to build on those performances when they meet Jamshedpur FC.

Team News

Jamshedpur FC have a fully fit squad going into the game. Meanwhile, Jerry Lalrinzuala is fit to be back into the squad for East Bengal. However, Charalambos Kyriakou might not feature in the game.

Head-to-Head

In the four outings in the past two seasons, both the teams stand toe-to-toe with the same record against each other. Both Jamshedpur and East Bengal have won once each and shared the spoils on two occasions. The goals scored are also equal and the count is three.

Played - 4

Jamshedpur FC - 1

East Bengal - 1

Drawn - 2

Predicted Line-ups

Jamshedpur FC (4-3-1-2)

TP Rehenesh (GK), Laldinliana Renthlei, Pratik Chaudhuri, Peter Hartley, Ricky Lallawmawma, Boris Singh, Germanpreet Singh, Jitendra Singh, Jay Emmanuel-Thomas, Daniel Chima Chukwu, Ishan Pandita

East Bengal (4-4-2)

Kamaljit Singh (GK), Sarthak Golui, Lalchungnunga, Ivan Gonzalez, Jerry Lalrinzuala, VP Suhair, Jordan O'Doherty, Alex Lima, Naorem Mahesh Singh, Semboi Haokip, Cleiton SIlva

Player to Watch

Boris Singh (Jamshedpur FC)

Some might consider it too early to put the youngster on the list. However, the pacey winger has looked extremely different under Aidy Boothroyd. He registered a goal in the first game itself. His link-up play with Chima and his confidence on the ball has also been brilliant.

Boris has started every game, hence it is likely that he will retain his place in the starting XI against East Bengal. A good synergy among Boris, Chima and Pandita could mean wonders for Jamshedpur, which can in return help them grab their second win of the campaign.

Cleiton Silva (East Bengal)

Cleiton is one of the best attacking threats for the Red & Gold brigade. He has been a captain figure for the youngsters at the club. While he can both provide and score goals, he would look to boost up his goals tally. Nonetheless, he’s been a great signing and has proven his worth already with three goals so far this season. So once again, keep an eye on the 35-year-old.

Did You Know?

• East Bengal’s Alex Lima, Mobashir Rahman and Amarjit Kiyam have represented Jamshedpur FC before.

• East Bengal had the joint lowest goal difference last season.

Telecast

The Jamshedpur FC vs East Bengal match will be played at the JRD Tata Sports Complex, Jamshedpur on November 27 (Sunday). The kick-off time is 07:30 pm IST. The game will be telecast live on the Star Sports Network. The match will also be live streamed on the Disney+Hotstar platform and the JioTV app.