Kerala Blasters, who boast of one of the best forward lines among all Indian Super League (ISL) teams this season, look forward to getting on the scoresheet at least more than once on Friday November 24 when they take on debutantes Jamshedpur FC in their second game.
It was a goalless draw between the Blasters and ATK in their opening match of the ISL 2017-18 season last week.
Plenty were expected from the likes of CK Vineeth, Dimitar Berbatov and Iain Hume, but the result left the Kerala Blasters fans absolutely frustrated.
Plenty of reunions on cards
Steve Coppell returns to the JLN Stadium Kochi as the Jamshedpur FC head coach. The 62-year-old Englishman guided the Blasters to finishing runners-up last season. Home fans would definitely want to give Coppell a rousing reception as well as hope that their team does everything on the field to overpower their former coach's tactics on Friday.
"I'm glad to be here. The reception I have had so far from the people I have seen walking on the streets has been lovely," said Coppell. "It's nice to be remembered, but it's a new season, and I am here to do the job for somebody else."
Former Blasters players Kervens Belfort, Mehtab Hossain and Farukh Choudhary also return to Kochi as Jamshedpur FC players.
Tough match for both teams
Kerala Blasters coach Rene Meulensteen is looking for the team's first three points in the competition but reveals that Jamshedpur FC are a hard nut to crack. The away team also recorded a goalless draw against NorthEast United FC in their last match.
"It will be a difficult match for sure. Knowing Steve (Coppell), he will have the team very well organized, he will have them working hard, he will have them very hard to break down," mentioned the former Manchester United assistant coach. "And the sort of style that I expect is that they will be fairly direct.
"So, we have to be very alert in terms of those sort of things because they can catch you off guard."
KERALA BLASTERS vs JAMSHEDPUR FC
Date: November 24
Time: 8 pm IST
Venue: JLN Stadium Kochi
TV guide
India - Star Sports 2/HD, Star Sports Hindi 1/HD, Star Sports 3, Star Gold, Star UTSAV, Jalsha Movies, Suvarna Plus.
Live streaming
India - Hotstar
