After a recent triumph over Coyle’s men, the two time ISL Champions; Chennaiyin FC is scheduled to face their arch-rivals Kerala Blasters FC in a fierce “Southern Derby” clash on November 29, 2020, at GMC Bambolim Football Stadium. Chennai will be playing their second game of the season whereas it will be a third match of the season for the Blasters.
Kerala suffered a defeat in their first match against ATK Mohun Bagan and they were held for a 2-2 draw against North East United FC in their second encounter of the season. Both the teams will look to bring out their best to enlighten the “Southern Derby” and will try to end the battle with a win.
3 Indian Players and 3 Foreign Players to watch out in Chennaiyin FC
Indian Players:
Anirudh Thapa, Rahim Ali and Lallianzuala Chhangte are the three Indian players to look out in the Chennaiyin Camp.
Thapa had an outstanding game against Jamshedpur FC. He created a few records; scored the fastest goal of the season and became the First Indian goal scorer of this season. On the other hand, the young prospects Rahim Ali and Chhangte had a decent outing in the first game. Chhangte has the calibre to fire in goals from the left-wing and has proved his talent in the last season particularly against KBFC. Now, he will attempt to add a few more goals to his tally.
Rahim Ali is also in excellent touch; he even scored his first goal for the club in the pre-season friendly against Odisha FC and now he will be looking to put his name in the ISL score sheet.
Foreign Players:
Rafael Crivellaro, Esmaël Gonçalves (Isma) and Fatkhullo Fatkhulloev are their key overseas players. They are the ones whom we should lookout in the upcoming game against Kerala.
Crivellaro carried his tremendous form from the last season and was unstoppable in the previous game. Chennai’s new recruit Isma had a dream ISL debut where he scored and assisted a goal in the opening fixture. Fatkhullo showed glimpses of his brilliance at the final minutes against JFC and could prove as a valuable asset for the club. These six players from Chennaiyin will be a threat to Kibu’s yellow brigade in the next game.
3 Indian Players and 3 Foreign Players to watch out in Kerala Blasters FC
Indian Players:
The three Indians to watch out in the yellow contingent are Jessel Carneiro, Nangdomba Naorem and Nishu Kumar.
Jessel looked impressive in the first two matches and could soon bring out his last season performance in the upcoming games. Naorem also had a fantastic game against ATKMB; his crosses from left flank could prove vital for the Kerala Strikers. After missing out the opening encounter due to injury, Nishu played in the second match and was rock solid at the back. His tackles could stop the “Mizo-Flash” Chhangte in the attacking third.
Foreign Players:
Sergio Cidoncha, Costa Nhamoinesu, Vicente Gomez are the three Kerala foreign players to look out in this game.
In the first two games, Skipper Cidoncha was in top form. He found the back of the net in the last game against NEUFC. His partnership with the underrated Vicente Gomez will play an integral part in the Kerala Midfield. They both could provide the much-needed assists for Gary Hooper and Jordan Murray. Costa is undoubtedly the standout performer for the Blasters in this season. He could be a menace for the Chennaiyin Strikers; his presence would ease out the tensions in the backline.
Injuries
Sahal Abdul Samad and Rahul KP are the injury concerns for the Kerala Blasters; they both might not be fully fit for this match. For the men in Blue, Fanai is likely to warm the bench as he limped off the field in the last match.
The expected line up of Chennaiyin FC
Formation: 4-2-3-1
Vishal Kaith (GK), Jerry Lalrinzuala (LB), Eli Sabia (CB), Enes Sipović (CB), Reagan Singh (RB), Anirudh Thapa (DM), Deepak Tangri (DM), Lallianzuala Chhangte (LW), Rafael Crivellaro (AM), Esmaël Gonçalves (RW), Jakub Sylvestr (ST)
Substitutes: Karanjit Singh (GK), Rahim Ali, Edwin Sydney Vanspaul, Germanpreet Singh, Lalchhuanmawia, Memo Moura, Thoi Singh, Fatkhullo Fathulloev, Aimol Reamsochung.
The expected line up of Kerala Blasters FC
Formation: 4-2-3-1
Albino Gomes (GK), Jessel Carneiro (LB), Bakary Kone (CB), Costa Nhamoinesu (CB), Nishu Kumar (RB), Jeakson Singh (DM), Vicente Gomez (DM), Nangdomba Naorem (LW), Sergio Cidoncha (AM), Seityasen Singh (RW), Gary Hooper (ST)
Substitutes: Prabhushkan Singh Gill (GK), Jordan Murray, Facundo Pereyra, Lalthathanga Khawlhring, Rohit Kumar, Prasanth Karuthadathkuni, Ritwik Das, Lalruatthara, Denechandra Meitei.
Head to Head:
Played – 14 Matches
CFC – 6 Victories
KBFC – 3 Victories
Draws – 5 Matches
Recent Fixture – KBFC (Lost) 3 – 6 (Won) CFC (February 1, 2020)
Predictions:
Kerala Blasters are still in crisis and will try hard to notch up their first win of the season. They will come with all guns blazing and will look to put an end to their misery.
But in contrast, the Chennaiyin team looks more solid than KBFC; they are arriving with a winning mentality. Thus, they have a slight edge over the Blasters and hence we predict that CFC will add three more points to their name.
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