By Liven Bose
18 November 2021
Kerala Blasters FC had a forgettable season as they finished 10th position in the Points Table of ISL 2020-21 season and they are looking to make a strong comeback this season. Kerala Blasters FC assigned 44-year-old Serbian Head Coach Ivor Vukomanovic for the upcoming 2021-22 season. He has to prove himself in India after being out of coaching since 2019, with Apollon Limassol in Cyprus. Kerala Blasters FC retained most of their Indian Core but retained no foreign players and signed all new players in Enes Sipovic, Marko Leskovic, Adrian Luna, Alvaro Vazquez, Jorge Pereyra Diaz, and Chencho Gyeltshen as the Asian Quota foreigner.
COACH AND PREFERRED FORMATION
If we take a look into Ivan Vukomanovic's profile as a coach, we can say he is not that successful, as in most of his previous clubs he had short stints (Though he have one trophy in his hand). Also, having no experience in Asian Football might be a disadvantage for Kerala Blasters FC. Although he didn’t have many achievements for the teams he has coached to date, he has promoted and developed many young players wherever he has worked in the past. Coming to his most preferred formations, he prefers to play his team in 4-2-3-1 and 4-4-2 formations.
STRENGTHS
Kerala Blasters FC maintained their Indian Core and signed some quality, potential players which will be an advantage for them in the long run. Notable winger Vincy Baretto, Left Back Sanjeev Stalin, Veteran Versatile midfielder Harmanjot Khabra, Defender Ruivah Horipam are some of the new Indian player signings in the squad.
In the Foreign department, they have signed Enes Sipovic who has previous experience in the ISL with Chennayin FC in the 2020-21 season. While the rest of the foreign players other than Chencho have no ISL experience in the past but that doesn’t make them in backfoot as they have played in top European leagues in the past. Good players can easily settle in any league and on any given conditions.
For guarding their post, they have experienced custodians in Albino Gomes, one of the players who performed well for them last season, otherwise, they could have conceded a lot more goals. They also have young talented Prabsukhan Singh Gill who is a good backup in that section.
In defense, they have good Centre-Backs in Enes Sipovic, Marko Leskovic, Abdul Hakku, and Ruivah Horipam. In Right Back the options include Sandeep Singh and Harmanjot Khabra. Whereas the players that can play in the left-back positions include Nishu Kumar (he can also play as a RB), Jessel Carneiro, and Sanjeev Stalin. These players are very strong defensively and can create a headache for the opponent Forwards.
Coming to Midfield, they have some good players on paper. They have Jeakson Singh along with Puitea and Ayush Adhikari to help their defense. Their experienced Midfielders Seityasen Singh, Adrian Luna will play a crucial role in the midfield department. Along with them, their young prospects Sahal Abdul Samad and Givson Singh will find time to make surprises this year. The Midfield department is quite surprising with the presence of these youthful players with large potential. They also have good Midfielders who can help their attacking department and can bridge the defense and forward line in the transition phase.
In attack, their team is one of the deadliest in the league. They have potential players like Rahul KP and Vincy Baretto who can scare the opposition defense with their unexpected moves through the flanks. The presence of tall figured striker Alvaro Vazquez and Jorge Pereyra Diaz can turn out to be an advantage as they are known for converting set pieces and high crosses into goals with good finishing ability. On the left wing, they have Bhutanese International Chencho Gyeltshen, and on right, they have Prasanth K along with Sreekuttan VS to increase the power of their attack.
WEAKNESS
One of the serious concerns that will haunt them from last season will be their defense as they conceded many goals which made them lose matches despite taking the lead. They signed two Foreign Cente Backs to make sure that they don’t repeat last season’s miseries. But they lack an experienced Indian Centre Back which might backfire against them if their foreigners are injured or suspended then they will be forced to play with Indian Centre Backs. So, it is clear that their performance depends on how the foreign Centre Backs perform and adapt to ISL for the upcoming season. Also, the full-backs need to perform well in the transition phase since they were out of form last season.
They also lack an experienced Central Midfielder as most of their midfielders are either Defensive Midfielders or Attacking Midfielders. We have to wait and see how their young Indian midfielders perform this season.
Though their attack is pretty well and strong, we will have to wait and see how their star Centre Forward Alvaro Vazquez and Jorge Pereyra Diaz perform. Also, the wingers need to step up their game and create more goalscoring opportunities and put constant crosses in the center from the wide.
PLAYERS TO WATCH OUT
Alvaro Vazquez
Ruivah Horipam
Sahal Abdul Samad
Vincy Baretto
Adrian Luna
Rahul KP
PROBABLE FINISH
Their stats during the last seasons may not be convincing enough to make Kerala Blasters a Title Challengers when compared to other teams. But they do have some big-name players as well as young energetic players with large potential that can create wonders. This season will be a challenge for both the team and the coach to prove their critics wrong and perform which will make it a season their large passionate fanbase has been dreaming of for a long time. Their coach can take them to the top 4 spots with this squad at their disposal if everything goes according to the plan. Minimum expectations are that the Blasters might have a midtable finish.
SQUAD
GOALKEEPERS
Albino Gomes
Prabhsukhan Singh Gill
Muheet Shabir
Sachin Suresh
DEFENDERS
Sandeep Singh
Nishu Kumar
Abdul Hakku
Hormipam Ruivah
Bijoy V
Enes Sipovic
Marko Lešković
Denechandra Meitei
Sanjeev Stalin
Jessel Carneiro
MIDFIELDERS
Jeakson Singh
Harmanjot Khabra
Ayush Adhikari
Givson Singh
Lalthathanga Khawlhring
Prashant K
Vincy Barretto
Sahal Abdul Samad
Seityasen Singh
Rahul K P
Adrian Luna
STRIKERS
Chencho Gyeltshen
Jorge Pereyra Diaz
Álvaro Vázquez
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