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Two teams in contrasting form are set to battle as East Bengal are scheduled to host the in-form Kerala Blasters at the Salt Lake Stadium on Saturday.
East Bengal are coming on the back of a 2-1 loss to FC Goa, marked by quick late goals from Sandesh Jhingan and Victor Rodriguez, highlighting their recent struggles.
Despite a strong start to the season that saw them finish as runners-up in the Durand Cup, the Torchbearers have found it challenging in the past month, managing only one win in their last four games.
Head coach Carles Cuadrat faces the dilemma of striking the right balance between offense and defense, leading to untimely errors on both ends of the field and costing his team dearly. In a pre-game press conference, the Spanish coach stressed the need for defensive improvement.
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"What we have to change is that we have to be defensively stronger. In the past seasons in the ISL, my teams have gotten a lot of clean sheets, which we have failed so far this season. We are working on this. If you see most of our games, the opponent team is creating chances and it is coming from set-pieces, so we have to work on stopping that. We need to stop letting opponents create a lot of chances," he insisted.
Meanwhile, Kerala Blasters are currently fourth in the standings with 10 points from five games. Ivan Vukomnaovic’s men have displayed resilience and determination throughout the season, battling through injuries and suspensions to key players.
The Blasters' strength at home is evident, but they have faced challenges in away matches as shown by their sole loss to Mumbai City FC on the road.
Vukomanovic, speaking at his pre-match press conference, believes that all ISL teams are still searching for their rhythm and hopes his team can continue to grind out results until their injured players return to the squad.
"East Bengal has a very good team with a very good coach. They have had a nice season and did well in the Durand Cup too. I think many clubs, almost all the clubs, are still finding the moment of finding themselves, solutions, even though we are five games in the season," he stated.
East Bengal FC vs Kerala Blasters FC: Match Details
Match: East Bengal FC vs Kerala Blasters FC, Indian Super League (ISL) 2023-24 season.
Date & Time: Saturday, November 4, 2023, 8:00 pm IST.
Venue: Salt Lake Stadium, Kolkata.
East Bengal FC vs Kerala Blasters FC: Telecast details
The ISL clash between East Bengal FC and Kerala Blasters FC will be broadcast live on Sports18 and VH1 in India from 8 pm IST onwards on Saturday, November 3.
East Bengal FC vs Kerala Blasters FC: Live streaming details
The match between East Bengal FC and Kerala Blasters FC can also be live-streamed on the JioCinema app in India.
