Guwahati (Agency): Kerala Blasters FC will take on NorthEast United FC on Saturday, at 7:30 pm IST in Guwahati, hoping to regain momentum before the final leg of the season commences, having already qualified for the season.
The Yellow Army had a stellar first half of the campaign that put them in a strong position to finish in the top-six. Head coach Ivan Vukomanovic has now taken the club into the playoffs in all three seasons that he has been at the helm.
With three losses and a draw in their last five matches, they have dropped 11 points out of a possible 15. They lost to East Bengal FC 4-2 in Kochi in their previous encounter. KBFC has 30 points, having won nine matches, drawn three and lost eight games. They are at the fifth spot in the table.
On the other hand, the Highlanders are in the penultimate spot with 20 points but still have nine of them to play for in the remaining three games. They have won four matches, drawn eight and lost seven matches.
Realistically, they still can qualify for the playoffs, and that hope should keep them going especially against an out-of-form Kerala Blasters FC. However, they were handed a 4-1 humbling by Mumbai City FC in their last game, and it will be interesting to see the road to recovery that the Highlanders undertake to bounce back from that loss.
“It is important to win and not draw. I watched all the goals that we have conceded this season and I think we have dropped 17-18 points so far. If we even got seven of those points, we would be fourth now,” NorthEast United FC head coach Juan Pedro Benali said before the game as quoted by an ISL press release.
“It is always a very tough away game, far away from Kochi. We will see a couple of new names, couple of young players who will take their first steps in the ISL from this match,” Kerala Blasters FC head coach Ivan Vukomanovic said in the pre-match press conference. (Courtesy: ANI)
