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NorthEast United would look to continue their winning run as they host Kerala Blasters in a crucial encounter tomorrow in Guwahati. It’s a do or die situation for the visitors as one more loss they will practically and numerically be out of the league for this season.
While, for the hosts, they need to consistently win their home stretch of matches if they wish to concrete their road to the semis. NorthEast United are currently fifth in the league with 13 points and now have a chance to go to the top of the table, provided they beat Kerala.
The Highlanders come into this match with a lot of confidence having beaten Atletico de Kolkata and Chennaiyin FC convincingly at their home while their performance against Delhi was solid but had to be content with a draw. Kerala, on the other hand, suffered a disappointing 3-2 loss against Kolkata at home and sit at the bottom of the points table with eight points.
Kick-off Time and Live Telecast
Live Telecast: StarSports 2, StarSports HD2, Star Gold (Hindi)
Live Streaming: starsports.com
Date and Time: Saturday, 15th November 2015 – 1900 IST
Venue: Indira Gandhi Stadium, Guwahati.
Live updates on Sportskeeda
Team News
NorthEast United
Once injury ravaged, NorthEast United now have their full strength squad available. Cesar Farias knows how to rotate his squad well and it will be interesting to see what combination he goes for tomorrow. The signing of new forward Victor Mendy might be a surprise element in the match as the coach has confirmed his availability for the match. He is likely to replace Dadzie upfront who has failed to impress lately.
Also, it will be intriguing to see if he fields Sanju Pradhan tomorrow who was presumably rested in the last match. With Aiborlong Khongjee back from national duty, he is expected to team up with Andre Bikey to take care of NorthEast’s defence.
Kerala Blasters FC
Kerala Blasters have issues to deal with. Star striker Sanchez Watt will not be available for the match due to a hamstring injury. In his absence, the entire attack of the team will rely on Mohammed Rafi while Antonio German who scored a brace in their last match should also fill in. The fact that Sandesh Jhingan and Cavin Lobo are back from national duty will, however, be a big boast for Kerala.
Kerala Blasters are at the bottom of the pool with eight points from nine matches. But the head coach is not short on confidence.
“We have been playing some good football in the last couple of matches and hopefully we can keep going,” said Phelan.
Assistant coach Trevor Morgan also re-sounded the same as.
“We know the position that we are in. We will try to get three points and there will not be any negativity. We have to win four of our last five games. If we do not do that, it will be very, very difficult. Of course in football anything is possible. Unless it’s mathematically impossible, we have to keep believing we can do it.”
Probable Line Ups
NorthEast United XI: TP Rehenesh, Cedric Hengbart, Carlos Lopez, Reagan Singh, Aiborlong Khongjee, Andre Bikey, Bruno Arias, Simao Sabrosa, Sanju Pradhan, Nico Velez, Victor Mendy.
Kerala Blasters XI: Stephen Bywater, Rahul Bheke, Sandesh Jhingan, Peter Ramage, Saumik Dey, Antonio German, Joao Coimbra, Mohammed Rafi, Josu, CK Vineeth, Chris Dagnall
Key Battles
Nicholas Velez vs Sandesh Jhingan
It will be a big challenge not just for young Jhingan but for entire Kerala defence to put up with the pace of Nicholas Velez. The Argentine has been quite dangerous in the last couple of matches but has failed to hit the back of the net. This makes his quest even more veracious and the inconsistent Kerala defence should take note of this.
The trap for Velez would, however, be to beat the offside trap and marking of Jhingan. He often drifts a little too fast and the emerging player of the year of last ISL edition Jhingan very well knows how to take care of such situations.
Mohammed Rafi vs Andre Bikey
Tough challenge lined up ahead for the Indian player as he has to deal with not just the physique of Andre Bikey but also his brilliant holding skills. Bikey can be called one big discovery for NorthEast’s defence and was missing against the team that beat The Highlanders 3-1 back in Kochi.
Rafi should have in mind that it’s not the same team which he will be facing. For Bikey, the task will be to deal with the pace of the Indian.
Match Prediction
NorthEast United 1-0 Kerala Blasters FC
