Kerala Blasters Football Club can confirm that Sandeep Singh suffered a fracture in his ankle against FC Goa on Sunday and will be undergoing surgery for the same.
We wish Sandeep a speedy recovery!
Author: KBFC-Media
MAtch Day Preview : FCG vs KBFC
TEAM NEWS
Kerala Blasters will face FC Goa in their fourteenth game of the season at Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru stadium, Fatorda, Goa. Blasters who are in the third position of the table will be looking to strengthen their point tally, whereas Goa who are in the sixth position will be looking forward to continuing in the race for playoffs.
KBFC lost their last game against Mumbai City FC 4-0 which ended the 8-match unbeaten streak of the Blasters, but Ivan’s boys will be eyeing to bounce back against the Gaurs.
When these two sides met earlier in this season, it was Blasters who emerged as the best out of two. KBFC won the game 3-1 at Kochi. Luna, Diamantakos and Kaliuzhnyi found the nets for the home side and Noah Sadaoui nodded one back for the visitors.
KEY PLAYERS TO WATCH OUT
Adrian Luna was a workaholic in the field for Blasters against Mumbai. He was orchestrating almost every attack of KBFC but failed to find the nets against the Islanders. He covered a distance of about 12 kilometers and proved to be a vital member of the team.
Hormipam Ruivah was another standout player against Mumbai City FC. Even though the team conceded few goals, the young defender tried his best to coordinate the back line under unfamiliar conditions.
QUICK RUNDOWN
Both teams have faced each other 17 times and the Gaurs holds an upper hand above Blasters with 9 wins and 41 goals scored. Blasters have won 4, including the reverse fixture and have scored 26 goals. 4 matches ended in stalemate.
WHERE TO WATCH
The game between FC Goa and Kerala Blasters will be available on Disney+ Hotstar, Jio TV, Star Sports network and Asianet Plus. Live updates will be made available through the club’s twitter account as well.
Academy Operations ManageR
ABOUT
Kerala Blasters Football Club is an Indian professional football club based in Kochi, Kerala, that competes in the Indian Super League. The club is built on three strong pillars of Collectivism, Inclusivity and Sportsmanship, KBFC aims to being the biggest Football Club in India that generates young and talented players who not just represents the club in the National level but also the country in an international playing field, thereby reinforcing the legacy of Kerala towards the sport.
PURPOSE
To provide efficient services for the administration, operations and management of academy teams of Kerala Blasters Football Club.
RESPONSIBLE FOR:
● Responsible for all travel and accommodation arrangements and respective vendors.
● Responsible for Procurement in the Academy
● Responsible for for Vendor Management in Academy
● Responsible for Government liaison and Project report submission
● Responsible for Communication with parents of youth teams
● Responsible for All Project reports and delivery document preparations for the Academy
● Responsible for organizing Grassroots Festivals and Talent hunt Programs
● Responsible for all grassroots activities with the club’s Grassroots Partners
● Responsible for Young Blasters Sporthood Academy management
● Responsible for Auditing of YBSA centers
● Responsible for all administrative materials and resources of Academy
● Responsible for preparation of contracts for Academy players along with Academy Director and ensure the contracts are executed as per AIFF norms
● Responsible for all AIFF CRS/CMS for player registrations following the competition rules/player registration rules with District FA, KFA and AIFF.
● Responsible for Financial documentation as sought by the club’s finance team
● Plan and formulate the Operational Plan for the pre-season and the season for the Academy
● Ensure SOP briefing and adherence for the appointed support staff to ensure smooth of Academy
● Liaise between players, Coaches, Parents, GV Raja and Sports Kerala
● Any other duties as defined by the Academy Director/Sporting Director/ Wholetime Director from timeto time
WHO WE ARE LOOKING FOR :
● Bachelor degree education. Sports management bachelors/masters is a plus.
● Preferably 2 years of experience in Team Management/Operations within a sports organization
● Professional Proficiency in English, Malayalam and Hindi language. Proficiency in Malayalam Language(Both written and spoken) is mandatory for applicants
● Accepts accountability for all tasks and is able to take responsibility for outcomes
● Experience in achieving outcomes and results through influencing the way resources are utilized as wellas in managing them directly.
● Strong people management experience.
● Proficiency in financial, budgetary and procurement processes
● Communication skills to cater to internal / external stakeholders
● Proactive in planning, organizing and managing multiple priorities
● Comfortable with ambiguity and navigating fast paced changes
Interested candidates to send CV along with Covering Letter to careers@kbfcofficial.com Subject of the email must be “Academy Operations Manager”
MAtch Day Preview : MCFC vs KBFC
TEAM NEWS
Kerala Blasters will square off against Mumbai City FC in a mouth watering clash at the Mumbai Football Arena. Mumbai are yet to lose a game in this iteration of Hero ISL, whereas KBFC is on a 8 match unbeaten run. Both the teams will be looking forward to extending their ongoing unbeaten run.
Mumbai is currently placed at the second position with 30 points. They have won 9 out of their 12 games and have drawn 3. The Blasters are placed a step below, on third with 25 points from 12 games, winning 8 of them. MCFC won their last game against Odisha FC by 4-2 and KBFC beat Jamshedpur by 3-1. Giannou, Diamantakos and Luna scored for Kerala.Interestingly, KBFC’s last defeat was in the reverse fixture of this match, at Kochi, losing 2-0 to the Islanders. Mehtab Singh and Jorge Pereyra Diaz scored for them at Kaloor. A valiant second half performance from the boys wasn’t enough to get points out of that game.
HEAD TO HEAD
Both the teams have met each other 17 times in ISL. Mumbai have won 7 out of them and the men in yellow managed to beat them 4 times. The other 6 games ended up in draws.
KEY PLAYERS TO WATCH OUT
Dimitrios Diamantakos, who had a brief pause to his goalscoring run returned to his duty with the spot-kick against Jamshedpur FC. The Greek forward also assisted his compatriot Giannou, who scored the opening goal against the Red Miners.Apostolos Giannou, who started the game against JFC, scored the opener against them with a cheeky back-heel from Diamantakos’s assist.Adrian Luna had a very good outing against JFC. Apart from scoring the third goal, he made his presence felt everywhere on the pitch. He was the one who started the forward move to that landmark 200th goal and he himself finished it. Luna also earned the Hero of the Match award for the relentless efforts he put for the team.
WHERE TO WATCH?
The live streaming of the match will be available on Disney+ Hotstar, Jio TV, Star Sports Network and Asianet Plus. The updates will be made available through Club’s official twitter account also.
THE REWIND: KBFC VS JFC
When JAMSHEDPUR FC opted to go for a 3-4-1-2 formation. Coach Ivan Vukomanović opted to field Blasters unit under 4-4-2 formation with Adrián Luna moving to the midfield replacing Ivan Kalyuzhnyi (who lost the match due to a suspension) and Apostolos Giannou joining Dimitrios Diamantakos in the frontline.
Both teams conveyed their message to the opponents within the opening minutes itself. With Sahal Abdul Samad rushing into Jamshedpur penalty box in the 2nd minute and Chima Chukwu sprinting into Blasters penalty box to connect a long ball within seconds, both teams were eager to score first and induce pressure on opponents. Sahal Abdul Samad was back to knock on the goal line in the 4th minute only to be blocked by Pratik Chaudhari. 5th minute showed how dangerous Blasters attacking unit of can be. Adrián Luna was there to connect a pass from Dimitrios Diamantakos inside the Jamshedpur penalty box but the shot on target was blocked for the visitors by Muhammad Uvais. Ishan Pandita knocked on the Blasters goal line in the 8th minute only to find that Blasters custodian Prabhsukhan Singh Gill was vigilant enough to collect the ball with ease. On the other end, Apostolos Giannou made a header attempt and was denied by the Jamshedpur defence. ‘The red mariners’ were quick to launch a counterattack and Prabhsukhan Singh Gill was there to deny a shot on target from Chima Chukwu.
9th minute into the game, the new attacking duo made the score card click in favour for Blasters. A pass from Dimitrios Diamantakos and a back heal tap-in from Apostolos Giannou to the goal got the lead for Blasters. Blasters were back knocking on the goal line in the 13th minute with Dimitrios Diamantakos flicking the ball to Apostolos Giannou who tried a header attempt and unlucky to miss the target. Another run from Dimitrios Diamantakos in the 16th minute was denied by offside flag. A quick attack from Ishan Pandita got the Blasters defence and Prabhsukhan Singh Gill off guard on the 17th minute and Chima Chukwu did the job for ‘The MEN of steel’. Equalizer from the visitors.
A shot on target from Rahul KP on the 22nd minute was collected by Jamshedpur custodian Vishal Yadav. But that did not stop him from trying another shot in the 27th minute to miss the target narrowly. Blasters were back testing the Jamshedpur defence in the same minute through Apostolos Giannou delivering a cross which was collected by Vishal Yadav to avoid danger. Handball from Boris Singh inside the penalty in the 30th minute made the referee point the fingers at the penalty spot in favour of Blasters. With Vishal Yadav diving in the wrong direction, Dimitrios Diamantakos made no mistake to extend the lead for Blasters. Vishal Yadav was back to deny an attempt from Sahal Abdul Samad on the 33rd minute. When Eli Sabiá came in to deny another shot on target on 33rd minute, Apostolos Giannou marginally missed the target on a pass from Sahal Abdul Samad inside the penalty box. With Prabhsukhan Singh Gill clearing a shot on target from Ishan Pandita and Chima Chukwu missing the target on the 35th minute got the visitors close to scoring. Another attempt from Ishan Pandita in the 40th minute was cleared by Sandeep Singh. On the other side, Sahal Abdul Samad was unlucky to miss the target on 44th minute. With Blasters leading the score board, both teams went for the half time break.
Blasters went for the substitution first by bringing in Nishu Kumar for Jessel Carneiro at the starting of second half. Soon after the match restarted, Ishan Pandita was there to knock on Blasters goal line on the 46th minute only to miss the target . Sahal Abdul Samad was successful to break the defence line and receive a through ball from Adrián Luna and make a run to deliver a pass into the penalty box on the 47th minute. But Jamshedpur defence was quick to regroup and clear the danger. A defence breaking run from Chima Chukwu on the 53rd minute was brought down by an interception from Prabhsukhan Singh Gill outside the penalty box. Sandeep Singh got blasters close to scoring on the 60th minute only to be denied by Vishal Yadav. Sandeep Singh was back knocking on the goal line with a header within seconds followed by a brilliant clearance on the other end of the pitch to deny Ishan Pandita getting anywhere near the goal-line.
A string of perfectly calculated and executed one-touch passes combined with a brilliant finish from Adrián Luna in the 65th minute will remain as one of the best team goals from ‘MEN in Yellow’. It all started from Adrián Luna and Jeakson Singh closing down on Rafael Crivellaro and Adrián Luna clearing the ball. Luna passed the ball to Hormipam Ruivah and ball was passed back to Luna followed by a 1-2 pass between Luna and Hormipam, Luna move 3 steps forward with the ball and passes the ball to Sahal to start a symphony of one touch passes. Sahal gives the ball back to Luna, Luna to Diamantakos, Diamantakos to Giannou through a back heal, Giannou gives the ball back to Luna with another back heal and the ball was guided to the target by the ‘Magician’ himself. With the two goals lead and time slipping away from the clock Jamshedpur FC tried for final fightback. With bringing in Víctor Mongil and Nihal Sudheesh in the 72nd minute replacing Apostolos Giannou and Sahal Abdul Samad Blasters ensured that the energy level on field remained high. Bryce Miranda replacing Rahul KP on the 79th minute and Bidyashagar Singh replacing Dimitrios Diamantakos in the 90th minute ensured that the visitors defence unit was kept occupied till the final whistle. With the final whistle, Blasters walked out of the pitch unbeaten from the 8th consecutive match and the three points.
MAtch Day Preview : KBFC vs JFC
TEAM NEWS
Kerala Blasters will take on Jamshedpur FC in their first match of the year 2023 at Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, Kochi. Both the teams will be eyeing for a win to mark the start of a new year.
In the preceding game against Odisha FC, KBFC scored a late goal through Sandeep Singh to clinch all three points and ended the year on a high note. They will be looking forward to continuing the same momentum against JFC. Jamshedpur FC held FC Goa to a 2-2 draw in their last game and will be aiming to go a level up to grab a win against the men in yellow.
In their last meeting, KBFC won the game for 1-0 courtesy to Diamantakos’ close-range shot from a Luna freekick. KBFC is currently at 4th position in the table with 22 points from 11 games and Men of Steel is in the 10th position with only one win in their 11 games.
HEAD TO HEAD
Both teams have faced each other 13 times including the 2021-22 semifinals. Both teams have won 3 times and 7 games ended in stalemate.
KEY PLAYERS TO WATCHOUT
Sandeep Singh scored the only goal against Odisha FC on boxing day to help the men in yellow to win their last game of the year 2022. Apart from that goal, he also did a splendid job at the defense-line and earned the well deserved Hero of the Match award.
Nihal Sudheesh, the local lad who came in as a substitute in the second half, set the fire on the right flank within a few minutes. He almost got his first ISL goal on a couple of occasions, but narrowly missed it. He was crucial in the second half performance of KBFC against the Juggernauts.
Bryce Miranda, yet another player who came in the second half against Odisha FC registered his first ever Hero ISL assist to his name. His crosses always created threat in the Odisha box and at one instance it caught their custodian and the back line off guard and Sandeep acted at time to nod it home.
WHERE TO WATCH?
The live streaming will be available on Disney+ Hotstar, Jio TV, Star Sports network and Asianet Plus. Live updates will be provided through the club’s twitter account also.
THE REWIND: KBFC VS OFC
When ODISHA FC opted to go for a 4-3-3 formation. Coach Ivan Vukomanović opted to field Blasters unit under 4-4-2 formation with Jessel Carneiro back in the starting line-up with Captain’s arm band.
When both teams gave out everything on field till the final whistle for the 3 points, fans witnessed a close fought battle. Within first few seconds to the game, It was evident that the visitors have done enough research on Ivan Vukomanović’s men. Odisha Fc played a composed and high pressing game of football which did not allow Blasters to play the usual attacking game. Odisha Fc were the first one to knock on the goal line through Raynier Fernandes. A powerful shot from the jersey number 10 of Odisha Fc hitting the woodwork looked dangerous for the Blasters.
RECOVER and RESTRUCTURE is what this Blasters unit is known for. And they did it again. Blasters got back to the game in no time. 8th minute to the game Ivan Kalyuzhnyi was successful to give a through ball to the Odisha FC penalty box. However, Amrinder Singh was quick to collect the ball before Dimitrios Diamantakos could get a contact on the ball. 10th minute saw the ball again getting to the Odisha FC penalty box. This time Ivan Kalyuzhnyi himself took the ball to the attacking front only to be denied by the offside flag before Dimitrios Diamantakos could attempt a shot on target. A cross from Captain Jessel Carneiro himself into the penalty box in the 13th minute was cleared by Osama Malik. With Odisha FC repeatedly attacking on the Blasters goal line, Jessel Carneiro was inside the visitor’s penalty box again in the 18th minute only to miss the target marginally. On the other end, Víctor Rodríguez’s shot on target was comfortably collected by Prabhsukhan Singh Gill in 44thminute to deny visitors from scoring. Though attacks swing in both directions, respective defence units ensured that goals stayed away till both teams walked out for half time.
Second half saw Blasters taking away the game from the visitors. Blasters started identifying the open space between Odisha FC defence and was able to get to the opponent penalty box within first minute to the second half. Sahal Abdul Samad got to the Odisha FC penalty box again on the 50th minute only to be cleared by the defence at the last moment. A cross from Jessel Carneiro to the goal line in the 56th minute was collected by Odish Fc custodian Amrinder Singh before any Blasters players could reach the ball. Once Blasters got the game back from visitors, attacks became consistent. A pass from Adrian Luna to Dimitrios Diamantakos in the 57th minute almost got Blasters on the score board. A timely clearance from Carlos Delgado cleared danger for the visitors. Another attempt from Blasters on 66th minute looked promising but could not be converted to a goal. 67th minute saw Sahal Abdul Samad reaching close to scoring for blasters and narrowly missing the target. Nihal Sudheesh and Apostolos Giannou were brough in by Blasters instead of Rahul KP and Dimitrios Diamantakos on the 70th minute. Nihal Sudheesh came close to the scoring his debut ISL goal on the 71st minute. But was unfortunate not to get a contact on ball inside the penalty box. Apostolos Giannou made a successful run in to the penalty box in 72nd minute was cleared by Osama Malik. However, Captain Jessel Carneiro was there to test Amrinder Singh and Sahal Abdul Samad with an acrobatic attempt on the rebound. Another attempt from Apostolos Giannou in 74th minute could not reach Sahal Abdul Samad who was inches away from the score line. Bryce Miranda replaced Sahal Abdul Samad for Blasters in 83rd minute and that eventually resulted in the awaited goal for Blasters. Amrinder Singh stepped out to clear a cross from Bryce Miranda to the penalty box and Sandeep Singh there to guide the ball to the target through a header in the 86th minute. With the late minute goal, ‘MEN IN YELLOW’ made sure to walk out of the field with a win and another clean sheet.
MAtch Day Preview : KBFC vs OFC
Kerala Blasters will take on Odisha FC in the Boxing Day fixture of Hero ISL season 9 at Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, Kochi. This game will mark the start of the second phase of the season for both teams as they have finished the first 10 matches beforehand.
KBFC had a 1-1 draw against Chennaiyin FC in their last game which halted the 5-match winning streak of the Blasters. With 19 points from 10 matches KBFC is sitting at 5th position whereas Odisha is in 6th position with the same number of points but an inferior goal difference. They played against ATK Mohun Bagan FC in their last match, which also ended in a stalemate.
When the last time these two sides met, at Odisha’s home, it turned out to be a tough night for men in yellow. They went down to the Kalinga warriors for 2 goals to 1, even though it was KBFC who took the lead in the first half, Pedro Martin’s late goal offered them the victory at Bhubaneswar. Harmanjot Khabra was on the score sheet that day.
QUICK RUN DOWN
Kerala have a slight edge over Odisha as they have won 7 out of 19 matches and Odisha have won 5, including the latest meeting which happened earlier in this season. Points were shared on 7 occasions.
KEY PLAYERS TO WATCH OUT
Sahal Abdul Samad who scored a brace earlier this season against NEUFC made it into the scoresheet as he scored a delicate goal against Chennaiyin FC last week. He now has 10 ISL goals to his name.Ivan Kaliuzhnyi was pivotal in the middle of the park. He also provided the assist to Sahal’s goal, which showed his quality on the ball and his vision of the game.Marko Leskovic had a good outing against Chennaiyin last Monday. He was strong and steady in the defense and denied Marina Machans many times.
WHERE TO WATCH
The live streaming will be available on Disney+ Hotstar, Jio TV, Star Sports network and Asianet Plus. Live updates will be provided through club’s twitter account as well.
Familiar Foes, FAMILIAR FIGHT
MATCHDAY PREVIEW
Kerala Blasters will be taking on Bengaluru FC in the fiery Southern Rivalry at JLN stadium, Kochi. This mouth-watering clash will see both the teams facing each other for the eleventh time.KBFC is coming to this game after registering their fourth win in a row. The men in yellow defeated Jamshedpur FC for a solitary goal from Diamantakos. On the other hand, BFC previously faced a narrow defeat against ATKMB for 1-0.Blasters is standing in the 5th position of the league table with 5 wins out of 8 games. Bengaluru FC have 2 wins in 8 games and they are standing at the 9th position.
HEAD TO HEAD
Bengaluru FC have an edge over KBFC as they have won 6 games and KBFC grabbed all three points against them 2 times. Other 3 games ended in a stalemate. KBFC-BFC clashes always offer goals and the fans will be waiting to witness this raging fight.
KEY PLAYERS TO WATCH OUT
Dimitrios Diamantakos scored in the fourth consecutive game from Luna’s free-kick against JFC. He is a constant threat up front and he has an optimal work rate to help the team when in need.Adrian Luna continues to be pivotal for the Blasters. Last game he was orchestrating the attack of KBFC and also provided an assist to Dimi with a looping free-kick.Marko Leskovic is the solid presence in KBFC’s defense. He is a leader from the back and has kept back-to-back clean sheets. He also grabbed the hero of the match in the last game.
WHERE TO WATCH
Catch it live on Disney+Hotstar, Jio TV, Asianet Plus, and the Star Sports network.Updates are also available on the club’s Twitter handle
THE REWIND: JFC vs KBFC
When JAMSHEDPUR FC opted to go for a 4-1-4-1 formation, Coach Ivan Vukomanović opted to field Blasters unit under his effective 4-4-2 formation. With Ivan Kalyuzhnyi and Jeakson Singh taking care of the central midfield area, Sahal Abdul Samad and Rahul KP ware in-charge of the wing attacks. Captain Adrian Luna joined Dimitrios Diamantakos in finisher role.
‘THE MEN OF STEEL’, who were coming after losing 4 continuous matches made there statement loud and clear on the 4th touch on ball. A long ball cross from Jay Emmanuel-Thomas to the right flank of blasters penalty box within the first few seconds to the game made it clear that Jamshedpur Fc is desperate to get the 3 points. 2 minute in to the game, another long ball from Laldinliana Renthlei went ineffective as there were no JFC players to receive the ball. On the other side, Kerala Blasters played a composed and calculated game as they were tightly marshalled by Jamshedpur Fc on ever moves. A header attempt for Blasters by Sahal Abdul Samad on a cross from Ivan Kalyuzhnyi in the 4th minute was not powerful enough to test TP Rehenesh. A brilliant trough ball to the Jamshedpur Fc penalty box by Adrian Luna in the 5th minute could have caused trouble for the hosts if any of the Blasters strikers could be there to receive the ball. A shot from Ivan Kalyuzhnyi on cross from Luna in the 6th minute also went away from the post.
A clearance error in the Blasters half on the 9th minute resulted in Ritwik Das charging through the left wing and delivering a brilliant cross to the Blasters penalty box. But, a calm and confident Prabhsukhan Singh Gill was there to collect the ball to clear any danger. When attack swinged to the other direction, TP Rehenesh collected the ball safely when Rahul KP could not reach a cross from Marko Lešković. But, ‘MEN IN YELLOW’ was not that far from scoring. A freekick from Adrian Luna in the 17th minute was guided to the target by Dimitrios Diamantakos. With this goal Dimitrios Diamantakos matched the goal tally with Ivan Kalyuzhnyi as the leading goal scorer for Kerala Blaster in ISL season 9 scoring in the 4th match in a row.
An attempt from Sahal Abdul Samad in the 20th minute was denied by Jamshedpur custodian TP Rehenesh. Another attempt from Sahal in the 35th minute went away from the post. Jamshedpur Fc also had their fair share of attempts on goal. A shot on target from Ritwik Das in the 37th minute was denied by Prabhsukhan Singh Gill with a stunning save. Another shot on target for JFC from Boris Singh was comfortably collected by Blasters custodian in the 46th minute of the game ensuring that the score board remained in favour of Kerala Blasters when both teams walked out for the Half time.
With Kerala Blasters orchestrating the attack from midfield and Jamshedpur Fc closely defending each movement from the visitors, Ivan Kalyuzhnyi tried a long-range attempt in the 50th minute but missed the target marginally. Jamshedpur Fc shifted to ‘attacking mode’ in second half by introducing Ishan Pandita and Jitendra Singh on the 56th minute. 60th minute saw Ishan Pandita missing a clear chance with only Prabhsukhan Singh Gill between him and the target. Blasters also had our share of bad luck on the 66th minute when Rahul KP was unfortunate to miss the target on a pinpoint pass from Sandeep Singh into the penalty box. A header attempt in the 69th minute from Ishan Pandita and another one on by Daniel Chima Chukwu in the same minute narrowly missing the target got ‘The Red Miners’ close to scoring. Ishan Pandita again created trouble for the blasters defence again and brought down by Sandeep Singh inches away from the penalty box in the 72nd minute.
With a thin cushion of a 1 goal lead and feeling the heat at the ‘Furnace’ from the continuous attack from hosts, Blasters brought in Apostolos Giannou and Jessel Carneiro in the 76th minute replacing Dimitrios Diamantakos and Nishu Kumar respectively. Ishan Pandita knocked on the blasters goal line again in the 84th minute only to miss the target marginally. Blasters also introduced Saurav Mandal replacing Sahal Abdul Samad on the 85th minute and Adrian Luna was replaced by Víctor Mongil on the 94th minute to ensure that the hosts are kept away from scoring. And this ensured that Kerala Blasters walked away with the important 3 points in arow for the fourth time and also a clean sheet.