After an international break full of ups and downs, the Indian Super League action restarted with Chennaiyin hosting East Bengal at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium on Saturday and the Marina Machans somehow avoided a defeat after a late goal from Ninthoi Meetei.
High-scoring matches have been a rare sight to behold in the ongoing edition of Indian top-tier football. However, fans will be expecting a good number of strikes as Kerala Blasters will host Chennaiyin at the Jawaharlal Nehru International Stadium in Kochi on Wednesday.
Current Form
Kerala Blasters are currently leading the Indian Super League table with five wins in seven matches. The Tuskers have accumulated 16 points in the seven fixtures they have played this season. They suffered their only defeat against Des Buckingham’s Mumbai City 2-1 on October 8.
Nevertheless, since then, the Tuskers have been on a four-match unbeaten run. Moreover, Kerela Blasters have recorded three consecutive victories in their last three matches. Ivan Vukomanovic’s side played their last game against Hyderabad, who are yet to secure a victory in the ongoing campaign of ISL.
Milos Drincic, who made a comeback in the playing XI after a lengthy suspension, helped the Tuskers ace over the Nizams 1-0 with a first-half strike assisted by Kerala Blasters’ lynchpin Adrian Luna.
On the other side, Chennaiyin is currently having a hard time under the guidance of Scottish manager Owen Coyle. The Marina Machans have only recorded two victories in the seven matches they have played. Moreover, four of their fixtures have ended as a loss, which is a greater point of concern for Chennaiyin.
On Saturday, Owen Coyle’s side played a 1-1 draw against East Bengal, where Ninthoinganba Meetei’s last goal saved the Marina Machans from a home defeat. However, before playing the draw, Chennaiyin suffered a heartbreaking 3-0 loss against the Gaurs.
The Marina Machans’ only major win has come against Punjab, who became a part of the Indian Super League earlier this season. Chennaiyin defeated Punjab 5-1 on October 29, where Connor Shields scored a skilful brace.
Head to Head Record
Kerala Blasters and Chennaiyin have squared off against each other for a total of 20 times. Both sides have managed to secure six wins against each other while eight of their games have ended as a draw.
The Tuskers have lost one single game in their last ten home games, winning eight of the matches courtesy of the vocal home supporters. On the other side, Chennaiyin has witnessed favorable results only once in the last five away games.
The two sides played against each other for the last time in February, earlier this year and the Blasters edged the match 2-1.
Interestingly, the Marina Machans have failed to record a single win over the Yellow Army since the start of the 2020-21 season of the Indian Super League.
Team News
Adrian Luna will lead the attacking line of Tuskers against Chennaiyin
As reported earlier, Kerala Blasters defender Aiban Dohling will be missing the remainder of the 2023-24 Indian Super League season due to a devastating injury he suffered against Des Buckingham’s Mumbai City last month. Dohling was in fine form for the Tuskers but he only got to make three starts in the season.
Apart from the defender, the Blasters’ Jeakson Singh also won’t be making a return before the new year due to a shoulder injury. He also suffered an injury against Mumbai City, last month. In the second week of November, Singh went through a successful procedure on his shoulder.
On the other side, Chennaiyin’s Ryan Edwards was sent off during the added minutes against East Bengal on Saturday. Hence, he will be missing the match against Kerala Blasters. Apart from Edwards, no injuries or suspensions have been recorded from the Marina Machans’ side ahead of the game against the Blasters.
Predicted XIs
Kerala Blasters (4-4-2): Sachin Suresh, Pritam Kotal, Milos Drincic, Ruivah Hormipam, Naocha Singh; Daisuke Sakai, Vibin Mohanan, Danish Farooq, Mohammed Aimen; Kwame Peprah, Adrian Luna
Chennaiyin (4-2-3-1): Debjit Majumder, Ankit Mukherjee, Bikash Yumnam, Lazar Cirkovic, Akash Sangwan; Cristian Battocchio, Jiteshwor Singh; Ninthoingba Meetei, Rafael Crivellaro, Rahim Ali, Jordan Murray
Prediction
Kerala Blasters are currently in decent form as they have recorded three consecutive victories in their last three matches. On the other side, they haven’t suffered a loss in their last five home fixtures.
Apart from that, Chennaiyin is not in form to challenge the Tuskers and Vukamonvic’s men are most likely to ace over the likes of Chennaiyin.
