Both Kerala Blasters FC and Jamshedpur FC will be looking for their first win and goal of Hero Indian Super League (ISL) 2017-18 when they cross swords at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Kochi on Friday. The Blasters did not quite gel as a unit in their season opener against defending champions ATK but managed to secure a point after surviving ATK’s onslaughts. Jamshedpur FC also head into the contest on the back of a similar situation after grabbing a point against NorthEast United FC. The Highlanders were wasteful in front of goal, while Jamshedpur custodian Subrata Paul did his bit by making a string of splendid saves to rescue the 10-men debutants. The newcomers will also be without the versatile Andre Bikey for their match against Kerala after he picked up a straight red in their previous outing.

KEY PLAYERS

Courage Pekuson (Kerala Blasters FC)

The 22-year-old midfielder showed immense desire while getting forward in attack in Kerala’s previous encounter. The ATK defence found it difficult dealing with his pace, however, his touch let him down occasionally. The Ghanaian youngster will certainly be a handful for opposition defences to handle once he settles into his new surroundings and gets more minutes under his belt.

Izu Azuka (Jamshedpur FC)

A livewire in Jamshedpur’s attack against the Highlanders, the 28-year-old will once again be a threat when his team visits Kerala. A hostile environment to play in no doubt, but the Nigerian can be a game-changer in Jamshedpur’s quest for their first Hero ISL win with his raw pace and awareness inside the opposition box.

POTENTIAL STARTING LINEUP

Kerala Blasters FC

Kerala will probably line up in a 4-5-1 formation and pack their midfield with bodies.

Goalkeeper: Paul Rachubka

Defenders: Lalruatthara, Nemanja Lakic Pesic, Sandesh Jhingan, Rino Anto

Midfielders: CK Vineeth, Courage Pekuson, Milan Singh, Dimitar Berbatov, Jackichand Singh

Forwards: Iain Hume

Blasters’ head coach, Rene Meulensteen on the rival coach’s tactics, “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, 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.”

Jamshedpur FC

Steve Coppell is likely to stick with his favourite 4-4-2 formation, which gives his team a balance in attack and defence.

Goalkeeper: Subrata Paul

Defenders: Shouvik Ghosh, Anas Edathodika, Tiri, Souvik Chakrabarti

Midfielders: Jerry Mawhmingthanga, Mehtab Hossain, Trindade Goncalves, Sameehg Doutie

Forwards: Izu Azuka, Kervens Belfort

Jamshedpur head coach, Steve Coppell on his team’s mindset ahead of the match, “We have no fitness issues. Regarding the pressure, I would just say, it’s too early in the season for anything other than every team to feel the pressure. You want a good start. If you have a good start, you feel as if you belong and are a part of the league.”

KEY STATS

• Three former Kerala Blasters players make a return to Kochi donning Jamshedpur colours: Kervens Belfort, Mehtab Hossain and Farukh Choudhary
• This is the first time Steve Coppell and Ishfaq Ahmed return to Kerala as head coach and assistant coach of the opposition