The field is ready, the army will march; ISL Sport football starts today

Kochi
The stage was set and the noise rose. Now for the excitement. In the new ISL football season, the Kerala Blasters will hit the ball in a packed stadium today. The opponents are the Calcutta giants of East Bengal at the Jawaharlal Nehru International Stadium, Kochi. The match starts at 19:30.

The public is returning after a two-year hiatus. The match was played in Goa for the past two seasons due to the covid.
Blasters took an unexpected leap last season. Ivan Vukomanovic, Serbian, moved on to the final under the guidance of the coach. Although they lost to Hyderabad FC in the title fight, the Blasters’ game gained a lot of credit. The season in which the Blasters have achieved the most wins and points. Adrian Luna, Alvaro Vasquez and Sahl Abdul Samad were in good shape. He stood out in both attack and defense.

The Blasters aim to be a continuation of this. The first step was to restrain the coach. This is the first time a manager has stayed with the Blasters. All 16 players from the second team were retained. Vasquez and Jorge Diaz were among those who left. A handful of foreign players have been involved to bridge the gap. Ukrainian star Ivan Kaliushny is tasked with leading the midfield. Kaliushnik is responsible for the Blasters’ moves. Sahal, Luna and Jackson Singh will join. The midfield will be Blasters’ strength. Apostolos Gianu, Dimitrias Diamantakos and Bidyasagar Singh are the scorers. Marko Leskovic is the protagonist of the defense. Harmanjot Khabra, Hormipam and Captain Jessel Carneiro are in the cage. Prabhsukhan Gill as a goalkeeper.

There are seven Malaysian players in the Blasters lineup including Sahal, Rahul and V Bijoy. East Bengal finished last in the last season. This time around the Kolkatans will be under the leadership of former Indian coach Stephen Constantine. Brazilian Clayton Silva is the main player. Evan Gonzalez in defense. Brazilian Alex Lima in midfield.

The strength of East Bengal is the intelligent Indian players. Jerry Lalranzuala, Sauvik Chakraborty, Sartak Goluy and Aniket Jadhav will shine. There are also Malaysian actors such as Vice President Suher and Mubashir Rahman.

Entrance from 4:30

Spectators can enter the stadium from 4:30 pm for kick-off. There are extensive safety systems.
The stadium can hold 35,000 spectators. 90 percent of the tickets are sold out. VIP tickets priced at Rs 899 are available online and at the stadium. Kochi has the largest number of spectators in the ISL.

Ivan Vukomanovich / Stefano Costantino

Ready: Ivan Vukomanovic

Kerala Blasters coach Ivan Vukomanovic said he had prepared well for the ISL season.
The training went well. There are no problems with injuries this time like last time. The 45-year-old said all players are fully prepared. He is looking forward to playing in front of his own fans in Kochi. The most important thing is the presence of the fans. No stress, just joy.

Anyone can beat anyone in ISL. Nobody thought the Blasters would make it to the final last time. But all the predictions were wrong. This time it also comes with hope. None are deleted. Everyone is strong.
Vukomanovich has announced that Ukrainian Ivan Kaliushny will be the main player in midfield. In the last season he relied on Indian players. When asked about the quality of the new foreigners, the Serbian replied: “There was all this doubt in the case of Adrian Luna and Marko Leskovic”. Looking to play well against East Bengal. The coach of the Blasters has said that he will win the best team.

The goal is not the last place: Stefano Costantino

East Bengal manager Stephen Constantine said he will not come to ISL this time to return to last place. They are facing the Kerala Blasters with the sole aim of winning. Constantine, who is also the former India manager, said the setbacks in previous seasons will be resolved.

As everyone knows, East Bengal has faced many crises. When he took the lead, there were only 12 players on the team. The next work was hard. The strong point is the experienced foreign-Indian players. The team won’t be ready in a day. You will find excellence slowly. Blasters are good opponents. Playing Kochi is not easy. Constantine informed that none of this will affect East Bengal.