Our bad luck this season has been long-term injuries, says Ivan Vukomanovic

Kerala Blasters boss Ivan Vukomanovic also spoke about the youngsters in the squad.

Kerala Blasters FC find themselves on the road as they prepare to face Bengaluru FC in their upcoming Indian Super League (ISL 2023-24) fixture at the Sree Kanteerava Stadium in Bengaluru on 2 March 2024. It is going to be an exciting fixture as both sides share a turbulent relationship due to the hugely controversial incident last year where the Yellow Army staged a walkout while playing against the Blues.

There are huge stakes on the line for both teams as they chase their respective seasonal objectives. As for the Kerala Blasters FC in particular, their head coach, Ivan Vukomanovic, is trying his level best to improvise in the absence of key players owing to injuries. He also spoke about the tight scheduling and more during the pre-match press conference where he was joined by goalkeeper Karanjit Singh.

Here are the excerpts: 

Ivan Vukomanovic on turning point against FC Goa

Kerala Blasters FC’s head coach credited his players for the comeback against FC Goa in the previous fixture. In this regard, he said, “The things we were practising during the week, we were not doing them in the first half fully like we had wanted. We conceded two goals due to some mistakes. When you concede those two goals in the first half, it works on your mentality. Following the first water break, the players started doing what we wanted and pushed harder forward even when we were losing.”

“I am glad we managed the halftime team talk correctly and the guys did a great job,” he added.

Fighting for the position as a young player

The tactician shared his views on having to utilise young players in the absence of injured senior players and how he expects to cover up individual errors going forward. He said, “We are improvising and managing with the youngsters who are hungry to succeed, eager to show their qualities, that they deserve to be in the first squad. As a coach, I am pleased to see that because as a young player, you have to fight for your place and your career.” 

“We want to avoid these committing of errors, to see players learning from their mistakes and every game, whether home or away is a tough challenge because only six games are left to go,” the tactician further explained.

Bad luck with the injuries

Kerala Blasters FC have lost several key players including Sachin Suresh this season due to long-term injuries. Speaking on this topic, Vukomanovic said, “Our bad luck this season has been long-term injuries which is frustrating. I would rather like to see small injuries like cramps which other teams have but we have broken noses, shoulders, etc.”

“The season started with the Durand Cup where nobody was ready to play as it was part of the pre-season due to inhuman weather conditions in Kolkata which led to many teams having injured players. The period between September and December is the best. Instead of organising the cup (Super Cup) which destroyed most teams apart from those that did not have national team players (in the Asia Cup), it could have been a time for a break or an additional pre-season. The cup brought nothing but injuries to the teams,” the 46-year-old said suggesting that the organisers must analyse the congested nature of the fixtures.

Karanjit on his experience with the Yellow Army

Speaking on the experience and the challenges of performing for Kerala Blasters FC, the custodian said, “It has been good because we have been doing well in the last few seasons. There are a lot of young players who are coming into the senior team from the reserves. Whenever they get a chance to play for the senior team, they perform well. It is my job to perform whenever I get the chance. We have six more matches to go and we will take them on one by one and try to win them to get maximum points.”

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