The sixth edition of the Indian Super League will kick-off through a replay of the 2014-15 and 2016-17 finals.
Two-time champions, Atletico de Kolkata and Kerala Blasters who were the runners up on both those occasions will start proceedings.
Match Details
Date- Sunday, October 20 | Kick-Off- 7:30 PM (IST) | Venue- Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium
Kerala Blasters
The Blasters finished at the sixth spot last season and would be looking to redeem their identity this season. Eelco Schattorie is now the man in charge of the Blasters. Schattorie was previously the head coach of Northeast United as he took them to the playoffs for the very first time in ISL history.
The Dutch coach will be without ace defender, Sandesh Jhingan due to a long term knee injury. Spanish duo Sergio Cidoncha and Mario Arques sustained knocks during the pre-seaon friendlies.
ATK
Antonio Lopez Habas has been reappointed as the manager of ATK and is famously known for making his team win the inaugural championship in 2014.
Kolkata’s two new signings Anas Edathodika and Jobby Justin will have to wait for their first game for the new team as they undergo suspension. Jobby Justin will be ruled out for three more games, while Anas is serving a one match ban.
ATK’s star signing this season has to be Fijian striker Roy Krishna who was the top scorer of the Australian A-league and the player of the league last season. His former Wellington Phoenix partner, David Williams will also be seen paired up alongside him for Kolkata.
Predicted Lineups
Kerala Blasters: TP Rehenesh, Abdul Hakku, Gianni Zuiverloon, Jairo Rodrigues, Lalruatthara, Mario Arques, Sahal Abdul Samad, Sergio Cidoncha, Halicharan Narzary, Mohammed Rafi, Bartholomew Ogbeche
ATK : Dheeraj Singh, Pritam Kotal, John Johnson, Agus Garcia, Prabir Das, Pronay Halder, Sehnaj Singh, David Williams, Edu Garcia, Michael Soosairaj, Roy Krishna
Key Points
Off the 12 games played between the two sides in the ISL, it’s ATK who has had the upper hand with four wins in contrast to Kerala’s two wins. Six games have ended on level terms during that period.
Top Picks
Kerala Blaster’s newly appointed captain, Bartholomew Ogbeche would have the onus of leading the attack with intent this season. Though Ogbeche didn’t have much to offer for Kerala last season, he was once the scorer for his previous club Northeast Untied as he bagged 12 goals.
For ATK, recent signing Roy Krishna could set the ISL ablaze through his prolific goal scoring abilities. Krishna was the top scorer for Wellington Phoenix in the Australian A league with 18 goals to his name in the 2018/19 season.
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KBFC vs ATK Dream11 Today Match Prediction| Fantasy Team
Goalkeeper- A Bhattacharya
Defenders- J Johnson, G Zuiverloon, J Rodriguez, A Garcia-Iniguez
Midfielders- S Cidoncha, E Garcia, M Arques
Forwards- B Ogbeche, D Williams, R Krishna (C)