Kerala Blasters Vs East Bengal Preview: Three points crucial for both

Neither of the teams have registered a win this season yet.

On Sunday, the GMC Stadium in Bambolim, Goa will become host to an important game in the 2020-21 Indian Super League (ISL), as Kerala Blasters take on SC East Bengal. Both teams have had a forgetful campaign so far in the league, occupying the ninth and eleventh places on the points table respectively.

Kerala Blasters have drawn twice and lost in three games so far, while SC East Bengal have lost four out of their five matches till now. With both teams yet to register their first win of the season, the contest between the Yellow Army and the Kolkata giants can be expected to be a highly-competitive affair.

The Stakes

Kerala Blasters have managed to gather just two points from five matches so far, drawing against NorthEast United and Chennaiyin FC while losing to ATK Mohun Bagan, FC Goa and Bengaluru FC.

The one positive in their case is the fact that in each of their games till now, they have managed to show some moments of brilliance. The two goals that they scored against NEUFC and the counter-attacking goal from Bengaluru FC’s free-kick are some examples. However, these individual moments of brilliance have been few and far between and there is no way by which they will help the team in the long run. 

Kibu Vicuna himself has admitted in his recent press conferences that his squad needs to improve much more in both attack and defence. They have also had exactly one week since their last game.  

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SC East Bengal took five matches to open their scoring in the ISL and still went on to lose against Hyderabad FC last week. Just like KBFC, the Kolkata giants are also yet to register their maiden win of the campaign. After losing three matches on the trot, they managed to hold Jamshedpur FC to a goalless draw before taking the lead against Hyderabad FC, thereby showing some signs of improvement.

Meanwhile, Robbie Fowler himself has been finding faults with his own team. He does not feel convinced about the quality of several players and it is up to the team to prove him otherwise, if nothing else.

Kerala Blasters have shown a remarkable ‘consistency’ when it comes to commiting individual mistakes in defence and that is one thing which the Red & Gold Brigade would look to capitalise on. 

https://youtu.be/ykvTrXJCc7g

Team News

Barring captain Sergio Cidoncha, the rest of the Kerala Blasters squad is available for selection. Sahal Abdul Samad, Nongdamba Naorem, Seityasen Singh, Jessel Carneiro, Jeakson Singh, Puitea and Ritwik Das are also expected to be a part of the Kochi-based outfit’s matchday squad on Sunday.

For East Bengal, Danny Fox’s unavailability due to injury continues to plague the team’s progress, while Aaron Amadi-Holloway seems like he is yet to attain full match fitness.

Eugeneson Lyngdoh who was suspended for the last game is also expected to make a comeback into the squad, while Scott Neville is likely to be sidelined.

Head-to-Head

This being SCEB’s first-ever campaign in the Indian Super League, both teams will be facing each other for the first time on Sunday. Needless to say, that becomes another reason why this is a must-win game for both teams.

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Probable Lineups

Kerala Blasters

Gomes; Nishu, Sandeep, Costa, Jessel; Rahul, Puitea, Vicente, Facundo; Hooper, Murray.

SC East Bengal

Debjit; Gurtej, Sehnaj, Irshad; Rafique, Steinmann, Lyngdoh, Das; Pilkington, Maghoma; Jeje.

Man to Watch

Sahal Abdul Samad (Kerala Blasters)

Sahal Abdul Samad has had a difficult season, appearing in only one match so far. The poster boy of Kerala football failed to impress in the opener against ATK Mohun Bagan, while injury kept him out of action in the remaining matches.

The 23-year-old was training alone till last week and it has only been a few days since he resumed full training with the team. Having drawn the attention of critics already, Sahal will be very keen to make an impact in the upcoming matches. He is expected to be named in the matchday squad against SC East Bengal and in the game, he will aim to link-up with Gary Hooper, Jordan Murray, Rahul KP and so on to create and finish off chances.

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Jacques Maghoma (SC East Bengal)

Against Hyderabad FC, Jacques Maghoma earned the unique distinction of being the first-ever goalscorer for the Red & Gold in the ISL. He scored both the goals for his team as they went down by a scoreline of 3-2.

The winner of two ‘Player of the Season’ awards with two different teams has also been one of the best performers for SC East Bengal so far. It will not be surprising if he manages to put his own name on the scoresheet against the two-time ISL finalists as well.

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Did You Know?

• Kerala Blasters are winless in their first five matches of the season for the first time-ever.
• Both Kerala Blasters and East Bengal have conceded 10 goals so far – the most by any team this season.
• SC East Bengal attempted just 84 passes in the second half of the match against Jamshedpur FC – the lowest by any team this season.

Telecast

The match between Kerala Blasters and SC East Bengal is set to be telecast live on Star Sports 1 SD & HD, Star Sports 2 SD & HD (English), Star Sports Hindi 1 SD & HD, Star Sports 3, Star Gold 2 (Hindi), Asianet Plus (Malayalam), and Star Sports regional channels (in Bangla, Kannada, Tamil, Telugu and Marathi). It will also be streamed live on Disney+ Hotstar VIP and Premium and Jio TV.

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