Match: Bengaluru FC vs Kerala Blasters
Date: 28th November 2021
Venue: GMC Athletic Stadium, Goa
Time: 7:30 PM (IST)
Two former juggernauts of the ISL clashes to emerge supreme
Both sides will be desperate to flip their fortunes as Bengaluru will be raring to get back to winning ways after suffering a shock defeat at the hands of Odisha FC. They had a fantastic start to their campaign as they successfully drubbed Northeast United in their season opener but their defence came apart at the seams when the United attacking line-up came scouring for chinks.
Kerala is still to taste success in the ongoing edition of the tournament as they were hammered by Mohun Bagan in the opener while they could only walk away with the spoils from their Northeast United encounter. Despite scoring twice against Mohun Bagan, their attacking line-up has been pretty profligate and the solitary silver lining for them has been a young Abdul Samad who has been reckless, persistent and downright brilliant in his enterprises.
Kerala emerged as the more dominant side against the Highlanders but they couldn’t take their opportunities as Diaz, Barretto and Luna have been miscuing their strikes way too frequently. The Kerala midfield has been sleeping for most of the time and there is hardly any juice left in their attacking line-up that could provide a beacon to the defence to hold their fort.
Bengaluru, on the contrary, has been pretty impressive with their attacking line-up but their defence has come apart at the seams with a mere knock of the opposition. Sadly, for BFC, Sunil Chhetri has been lackluster and Ibara hasn’t really seemed to be the inexorable machine that he was being known for. Udanta has also run short of gas every single time he has ventured down the right.
Form Guide
Bengaluru FC: LWWDL
Kerala Blasters: DLLDL
Team News
Bengaluru FC will have to play the game without Leon Augustine who will most likely be out of the side until January due to a ligament injury. Jayesh Rane took a knock to the head and maybe out of this fixture, considering the length of the tournament as Marco Pezzaiouli will not like to lose him for the remainder of the tournament. There are talks of players suffering from stomach bugs and that would make life a bit difficult for the BFC outfit.
There is no major news of any injuries in the Blasters side. However, to bloom a smile on the face of their preceptor, Ivan Vukomanovic, Hamrnajot Khabra will be returning to the side. Kerala will have to work a solution shortly if they are willing to arrest this downward momentum. Things aren’t looking shiny for them for quite some time now.
Predicted Line-ups
Bengaluru FC: Bengaluru FC: Singh-Sandhu (GK), Roshan Singh, Alan Costa, Musavu-King, Ashique Kuruniyan, Suresh Singh, Bruno Edgar, Danish Farooq, Udanta Singh, Sunil Chettri, Cleiton Silva
Kerala Blasters: Albino Gomes, Harmanjot Khabra, Marko Leskovic, Enes Sipovic, Jessel Carneiro, Vincy Barretto, Lalthathanga, Jeakson Singh, Sahal Samad, Adrian Luna, Jorge Pereyra
BFC vs KBFC Top Picks:
Cleiton Silva, Striker, BFC
Cleiton Silva failed to hit the stride in the last game against Odisha FC but was phenomenal against the Highlanders as he bagged a convincing finish. He also squared off an opportunity before firing two shots on target and creating five chances. He completed 19 passes and won a tackle.
Jorge Rolando Pereyra Diaz, Striker, BFC
Even though Pereyra couldn’t locate the back of the net against the Northeast, yet he was instrumental in the attacks that saw him shooting once, creating a chance and winning 2 tackles. He scored a fine goal against ATK Mohun Bagan while hammering two pile drivers, and completing 12 passes.
Captain & Vice-Captain Selection
Sunil Chhetri will be a decent pick for captaincy given his predatory instincts. He has a keen-eye for goals and can unleash fury if he is allowed an iota of a space in the attacking third. Sahal Abdul Samad is a commanding pick for vice-captaincy, considering the blistering canters and those meaty strikes that he possesses at his disposal. It is surprising to witness that despite the presence of towering foreign visionaries, two Indians are leading the charge.
MPL Fantasy XI
Goalkeeper: Gurpreet Singh Sandhu
Defenders: Marko Leskovic, Jessel Carneiro, Alan Costa, Harmanjot Khabra
Midfielders: Udanta Singh, Sahal Abdul Samad(vc), Adrian Luna
Strikers: Jorge Pereyra, Sunil Chhetri (cap), Cleiton Silva
Note: The players recommended here need not be a part of the Playing 11 on game day. Users are advised to do their own research also and follow official sources and create their teams.
