Clawing back from two goals down to force a draw at Jamshedpur, Kerala Blasters FC (KBFC) is better placed to dominate another Indian Super League away game at the Balewadi stadium.
FC Pune City, which has shown vulnerability in the defence by letting in eight goals in four games, could find it difficult keeping a check on the visitor’s strike-force.
Blasters’ mix of local and foreign goal-getters, backed by attack-minded midfielders, took the team within sight of victory at home against Delhi Dynamos before the recovery against Jamshedpur. C.K. Vineeth and Serbian striker Slavisla Stojanovic have been on target, playmaker Seiminlen Doungel is influential on the pitch and Halicharan Narzary has been adept at overlapping on the flank.
Tight defence
Three drawn games in four appearances have pushed Blasters to the bottom half of the table, but not losing a match also points to a tight defence marshalled by Sandesh Jhingan with goalkeepers Naveen Kumar and Dheeraj Singh cashing in on opportunities given by coach David James.
The ex-England goalkeeper appeared impressed with international Vishal Kaith and felt that the Pune strikers need watching. “Their strike force has a lot of potential, so we need to score more than one. It is important for us to score more goals and hopefully, keep a clean sheet.”
Pune has retained the performers from last season like Marcelinho, Emilano Alfaro, Adil Khan, Marco Stankovic and Ashique Kuruniyan. For some reason, the bunch has been unable to replicate 2017 form and it cost coach Miguel Portugal his job. Under his replacement Pradhyum Reddy, Blasters re-discovered the confidence against FC Goa and revival signs are evident despite going gown 4-2.
Reddy observed: “Every game is a must-win game for us. If you pick up a win, you can make a significant jump up the table. Fortunately, other teams haven’t picked up too many wins. So that gives us some hope,”
The home team is a cornered bunch of players for whom winning will be only one step up the ladder from the bottom place.