Owen Coyle "big-game ready", Ivan Vukomanovic expecting tough clash

Jamshedpur FC and Kerala Blasters occupy the fifth and second places respectively in the ISL points table.

Coaches Owen Coyle and Ivan Vukomanovic approach their teams' clash with their respective sides in a favorable position. However, both of them are wary of each other's competitiveness and have deemed this game to be a tough match-up. Jamshedpur FC are in fifth place with 22 points while Kerala Blasters sit in second place with a point more than them. Needless to say, this is a do-or-die for both sides as Coyle's side could potentially snatch the second position with a win. On the other hand, a victory for Vukomanovic's side would see them become level on points with Hyderabad FC as joint league leaders.

Jamshedpur FC and Kerala Blasters FC both have three wins from their last two. Kerala Blasters, have a more crucial win over Hyderabad FC already in their bag. Jamshedpur FC will, however, approach this match on the back of a loss against Bengaluru FC. The Men of Steel will look to go a step further against the Yellow Army as they played out a draw in their reverse fixture.

Here's what both coaches, Owen Coyle and Ivan Vukomanovic had to say ahead of tomorrow's game:

Jamshedpur FC coach Owen Coyle

Must-win game for both teams. How much are you looking forward to this?

Owen Coyle: I think every game now is going to be the proverbial six-point and they call it is only three points for each time, but it's because you're playing against a direct rival. Big, big games, and we have to make sure that we're ready for it against a good side. Wonderful coach with some very good players and a tough team.

We've already played them when we were through the game, we felt on that night we could have won the game. That being said, we have to make sure we are ready. They’ve got good qualities and will be very respectful of that. But equally, we know we have to as well, so we have to make sure we are at our best and if we are, we're showing that we can win these tough games.

Injury Updates on Komal Thatal

Owen Coyle: Komal suffered a setback while trying to recover from his hamstring injury which is a travesty for Komal because he will have to miss more periods of time on the pitch. Everyone knows the opinion I have of him and he was a regular to start games for the team because he is a bright young Indian talent. When he comes back, he will continue with his career full of great potential. Unfortunately, I cannot say that it will take him 1-2 weeks, it would be longer than that to get back on the pitch.

At the same time, Peter Hartley is back and available to play. He is a tremendous influence on the team, being a proper leader. Hopefully, he is in full health to come back into the lineup and we will go on from there.

What is the way forward for Jamshedpur FC to ensure a top four finish?

Owen Coyle: The way forward for us in simplistic terms is to gather enough points and the only way to do that is by playing well in each and every game ahead. It might be a really cliche strategy to focus and win one game at a time, but right now we are really focusing only on Kerala Blasters and nothing else.

This sport has always shown that when you look too far ahead, then it comes back to bite you in the back. So, we have to make sure we are focused, we concentrate against Kerala Blasters and do our very best. If we do that, then we certainly feel we are capable of winning a very tough game.

Kerala Blasters coach Ivan Vukomanovic

Will there be any change in approach thinking about your next opponents?

Ivan Vukomanovic: Jamshedpur FC is a tough team. It will be a very hard game. I expect nothing but duels, running all around. And I think the team who stays more concentrated, will get on top. It will be a very hard game, I think for both teams. It depends on how both of us will face tomorrow's moment.

You know, like I always like to say let the better team win. And, in these circumstances of course, many teams have to be very prudent and careful about the fitness level, about what's happening around. So we'll see tomorrow, we'll see tomorrow. Again, it will be tough. We are expecting a tough game tomorrow.

Three matches in seven days for Kerala Blasters next. Does that put any additional pressure on the team?

Ivan Vukomanovic: Yeah, it must be like that because there were some changes in the calendar due to COVID outbreak, you know. And, now it's about how you will modify the training program, how we will modify our game plan and everything. So, we have to take a day game by game, seeing who is available, if anyone has any issues. So far we are right. We're expecting Rahul KP to be back with the team as an extra weapon.

If anybody asks us, of course, we would like to have that on a longer term, but it's not up to us. We have to adapt. We have to go through it and play those games. So that's it. We had a long period behind us, I think. We have enough fuel to face any opponent, to face every game and hope for the best.

A win against Jamshedpur will make it most points and most wins in season for Kerala Blasters. Your thoughts on that?

Ivan Vukomanovic: From one perspective now that I know that. Yeah, it gives you extra motivation, of course, from the other perspective, from the coaching stuff and organizing things, we cannot base our preparations and our strategy on these statistics. These statistics are really nice to hear. Of course we want to achieve as many points as we can and we want to fight for every point.

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