East Bengal vs Kerala Blasters lineups, team news, prediction and preview

East Bengal are lingering at the 11th spot in ISL.

East Bengal are desperate to get back to winning ways in the Indian Super League (ISL) when they face a rejuvenated Kerala Blasters at the Salt Lake Stadium, Kolkata on Friday (24 January).

The Red & Gold Brigade are now looking to at least get into the ISL top-10, but face a motivated Tuskers side who are eager to continue their ambitious climb to a playoff spot.

The Stakes

East Bengal

Having lost their last three straight games, the Torchbearers have witnessed their playoff hopes more or less diminished. All Oscar Bruzon’s side can do now is to look to get maximum points from their last eight ISL league stage matches. To even have a chance of reigniting their playoff hopes, East Bengal will need to start winning games.

That is why winning this game against Kerala Blasters at home is so important. Bruzon has to get his side to be more proactive in the opposition half and, more importantly, finish off their chances clinically. A win can at least help them regain their confidence levels, but another loss can end the interest levels of the fans for good.

Kerala Blasters

The Tuskers have been performing pretty well under the guidance of T. G. Purushothaman, being unbeaten in their last three matches. But it’s vital for the Kerala Blasters to regain their winning run and have a chance of keeping the pressure on the other teams vying for sixth place.

Kerala Blasters are facing East Bengal when they’re at a low point and struggling with injuries, so they need to take advantage of their superior confidence levels to oust the Red & Gold Brigade. They just need to be ruthless in taking advantage of their opportunities to get a win, as a draw or loss can cause Kerala Blasters to move very far behind in the playoff race.

Team & Injury News

Anwar Ali remains an injury doubt for East Bengal, while question marks remain on the availability of Saul Crespo and Mohamed Rakip as well. Aibanbha Dohling is suspended for Kerala Blasters after getting sent off in their recent draw against NorthEast United.

Head-to-Head

Matches Played – 9

Kerala Blasters wins – 4

East Bengal wins – 2

Draws – 3

Probable Lineups

East Bengal (4-4-1-1)

Prabhsukhan Gill (GK), Nandhakumar Sekar, Hector Yuste, Hijazi Maher, Lalchhungnunga, Jeakson Singh, Souvik Chakrabarti, PV Vishnu, Richard Celis, David Lalhlansanga, Dimitrios Diamantakos

Kerala Blasters (4-2-3-1)

Sachin Suresh (GK), Suresh Singh, Hormipan Ruivah, Milos Drincic, Muhammed Saheef, Freddy Lallawmawma, Vibin Mohanan, Korou Singh, Adrian Luna, Noah Sadaoui, Jesus Jimenez

Players to Watch

Richard Celis (East Bengal)

Richard Celis had a pretty eventful debut for East Bengal against FC Goa, being a lively figure for them in the wide areas. The 28-year-old winger will undoubtedly be more pumped up to make a stronger impression in his home debut for the Torchbearers and light up with the Salt Lake Stadium with something special.

Celis is blessed with impressive pace and dribbling ability, being able to burst past bodies with relative ease. However, the Venezuelan winger will need to be much more precise when it comes to work in the final third. That means he needs to time his final passes better to ensure they reach his teammates in the perfect scoring areas, as well as finishing off whatever chances he gets clinically to have a home debut to remember.

Jesus Jimenez (Kerala Blasters)

Jesus, Jimenez has maintained a pretty impressive goalscoring consistency for the Kerala Blasters, which will at least keep them in contention for a playoff spot this season. The Brazilian forward has 10 goals in 14 games so far, proving to be a worthy replacement for Dimitrios Diamantakos. Jimenez will be eager to prove that he’s much more effective than Diamantakos by bringing his A-game to the clash against East Bengal.

He’ll need to be very smart with his movement around the final third to fool their defenders and get into key goal-scoring areas. The Blasters will need Jimenez to be clinical with finishing off opportunities if they are to oust East Bengal at their own yard.

Did you know?

• East Bengal are one of the two ISL sides (alongside Hyderabad FC) to have lost 10 matches in the 2024/25 campaign so far.
• Adrian Luna (37) and Noah Sadaoui (36) are currently holding the second and third spots respectively in the most chances created tally in the ISL.
• East Bengal have picked up seven red cards in the 2024-25 ISL campaign, the most for any team.

Telecast details

The match between East Bengal and Kerala Blasters will take place on Friday (24 January) at the Salt Lake Stadium, Kolkata. It will kick off at 7:30 PM IST. The match will be shown live on Sports 18 and be live-streamed on JioCinema. It will be available for international viewers to watch on the OneFootball app.

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