After a long break, Jamshedpur FC return to action in Match 54 of Hero Indian Super League (Hero ISL) 2020-21 against Kerala Blasters FC at the Tilak Maidan Stadium in Vasco on Sunday. Following the 4-2 defeat against Odisha FC in their last game, Kerala Blasters FC will hope to show an improvement against a side that beat Bengaluru FC in their previous encounter.

Jamshedpur FC will enter this match unbeaten against Kerala Blasters, with two wins and four draws in six games since their entry into the Hero ISL. They have also scored 10 goals against the same opponents. “We have been working hard and are looking forward to playing. We have one or two players who are coming back. When we get a chance on the pitch, we need to try and win every game. Kerala Blasters will be dangerous opponents. We have to make sure that we are at our best,” Jamshedpur head coach Owen Coyle said ahead of their game.

Coyle can also revel in his record over Kerala Blasters. The head coach won both his matches against Kerala last season with his former side Chennaiyin FC. Another key positive for Jamshedpur will be the form of their Lithuanian striker against the Blasters. Nerijus Valskis, who has scored six goals this season, has five-goal contributions against them playing for Chennaiyin FC in 2019-20.

However, the striker has failed to find the back of the net in Jamshedpur’s last three matches. Facing a defence that has conceded 17 goals so far, the striker though will fancy his chances. Kerala’s defence have been hindered by injuries to Bakary Kone and Costa Nhamoinesu and this was evident in their loss to Odisha. Kerala have allowed 79 shots from inside the box so far while also conceding five penalties, which is an indicator of their defensive issues.

“It was a difficult night (against Odisha FC). Since that match, we have been preparing. We trained yesterday and we are going to train today. In football, you have to bounce back, show personality that we are a good team. We are trying to improve... I am sure that this team can get good results,” said Kerala head coach Kibu Vicuna ahead of the game.

Jamshedpur however will be wary of Kerala’s threat on the counter, with speedy players like Rahul KP and Jordan Murray at their disposal. Of nine goals that Coyle's side have given away this season, six have been scored in the second half and they need to address this against Kerala on Sunday.

Squads:

Jamshedpur FC

Goalkeepers: Pawan Kumar, Niraj Kumar, TP Rehenesh, Raj Mahato, Vishal Yadav

Defenders: Narender Gahlot, Joyner Lourenco, Ricky Lallawmawma, Sandip Mandi, Laldinliana Renthlei, Karan Amin, Peter Hartley, Stephen Eze, Subhash Barua, Manash Protim Gogoi

Midfielders: Aitor Monroy, Alexandre Lima, Amarjit Singh, Jackichand Singh, Isaac Vanmalsawma, Mohammad Mobashir, Jitendra Singh, Gaurab, Manisana Singh, Harsha Parui, Gorachand Mamdi, Billu Teli

Forwards: Nerijus Valskis, William Lalnunfela, John Fitzgerald, David Grande, Sapam Kennedy, Bhupender Singh, Aniket Jadhav

Kerala Blasters FC

Goalkeepers: Albino Gomes, Bilal Husain Khan, Prabhsukhan Singh Gill, Muheet Khan.

Defenders: Costa Nhamoinesu, Nishu Kumar, Bakary Kone, Jessel Carneiro, Sandeep Singh, Abdul Hakku, Lalruatthara

Midfielders: Sahal Abdul Samad, Vicente Gomez, Seityasen Singh, Rahul KP, Givson Singh, Lalthathanga Khawlhring, Yondrembem Denechandra, Arjun Jayaraj, Ayush Adhikari, Jeakson Singh, Prasanth Karuthadathkuni, Ritwik Das, Rohit Kumar, Juande

Forwards: Gary Hooper, Jordan Murray, Facundo Pereyra, Naorem Mahesh Singh, Shaiborlang Kharpan, Subha Ghosh

Live Broadcast Schedule:

Hero ISL 2020-21 Match 54: Jamshedpur FC vs Kerala Blasters FC

Date: January 10 (Sunday)

Time: 7:30 PM onwards

Channels: Star Sports Network

Streaming: Disney+ Hotstar and Jio TV