The rejuvenated ‘Neelapada’ from Kerala takes on a battered and bruised ‘Red and Gold’ brigade from Bengal on Monday, 2nd November at the Mucipal Stadium Kozhikode. Viva Kerala will be looking to give their home fans another thrilling match whereas, East Bengal come into the match desperately looking for a win. Both teams have a realistic chance at getting maximum points.

 

 

The last time both the teams played in the I-League, Viva ended up on the wrong side loosing both the games 3-1 and 2-0.

Form Guide:
Last five completed matches during the current season (2009-10) excluding friendlies/practice matches and most recent results first:

Viva Kerala – WLLL
Viva’s maiden win in the I-League has given them a much needed lifeline. They will be looking to tame the Team EB at home and grab maximum points.

East Bengal – DLDLD
The Red and Gold has been disappointing this season and has been having issues both on and off the field. They will be looking to clinch their first win against Viva Kerala I-League’s weakest team on paper. But they are wary of the fact that Viva are playing at home and coming into the match on the back of a brilliant win against Sporting.

Team News:

Viva Kerala
Sreedharan finally played his best available players in a formation that they are quite accustomed to and it has paid dividends in the form a great win.

The much awaited debut of Wisut Bunpeng will see him take the mantle from Viva’s suspended captain MP Sakeer in the middle of the park. The attacking midfielder will be looking to make an instant impact in the I-League.

Besides Sakeer, goal scorer from last match and makeshift striker KP Anish is also suspended for the match. This is likely to give former India junior camper Shibin Lal another start in the I-League. Rueben Senyo who scored two goals against Sporting will lead the attack once again.

Left winger Siraj seems to be slightly troubled by a minor injury but is likely to be fit before the match. In the likelihood of Siraj being declared unfit, Bimal Birua will take his place. CS Sabeeth and P Rahul continue to be injured.

The other players virtually pick themselves on the back of their performance. However, Sreedharan will have a minor selection headache regarding the off color Karma. P Sajesh will be in the running for a place in the starting line-up but Karma is likely to be given an extended run in the first team.

On individual count, the entire backline including the keeper are intelligent players but they need to be extra-cautious not to let the Bengal team breach the defence line.

Probable XI (4-4-2): Shahinlal Meloly – K Noushad, Bello Rasaq, Charles Dzisah, VV Surjit – T Karma, Raman Patrick Sisupalan, Wisut Bunpeng, C Sirajudeen – Rueben Senyo, Shibin Lal.

East Bengal
Subhash Bhowmick OUT and Philip de Ridder IN…

Injuries, loss of form and a winless season has left them in a very tight position with a few headaches when naming their starting XI. Baichung Bhutia, Soumik Dey, Rennedy Singh and Sanju Pradhan are injured and will miss the match against Viva. Whereas, others like Alvito D’Cunha and Riston Rodrigues are likely to be fit on match day but may not be given a start against Viva.

After playing a great first game, East Bengal’s first choice keeper Abhra Mondal seems to have fallen down in the pecking order after letting in three goals against Mahindra and five against Mohun Bagan. But, it is likely that Abhra will continue to keep the goal as Arup Debnath who replaced him against Salgaocar has not travelled with the team to Calicut.

The 27 year old Nigerian defender Oga Okpara will be a major physical presence in the game and will be looking to form a strong partnership with Govin Singh in the central defence. Captain Syed Rahim Nabi and Jibon Singh seem to have formed an understanding on the left side with the players switching positions as the situation demands. Young Nirmal Chetri will be playing in the right of the field. Poor form of promising player from last season Harmanjot Khabra and injured Rennedy Singh will cost dearly.

The midfielders have not been able to provide enough cover to their defence line giving the opposition enough time to maneuver and scheme things in the Bengal half.

Australian Srecko Mitrovic is likely to sit out and Mehraj who started in central defence in the beginning of the season has moved up defensive midfield to provide cover to the defence.

Danger man Yusuf Yakubu is likely to play in the hole as support striker allowing Abel Hammond and youngster Singam Singh to play upfront.

Abhra Mondal – Nirmal Chetri, Oga Okpara, Govin Singh, Jibon Singh – Mehtab Hossain, Mehrajuddin Waddoo, Syed Rahim Nabi – Yusuf Yakubu – Abel Hammond, Singam Singh

Players to Watch:
Wisut Bunpeng (Viva Kerala) – The former u-19 player from Thailand is finally cleared and will be a key ingredient to the Viva recipe for success against the famished Red and Gold brigade from Bengal.
Yusuf Yakubu (East Bengal) – The Ghanian has it in him to single-handedly turn the match in favour of the Bengal team. Yusuf has been in sublime touch in the last couple of matches and can be a class act on his day.

Key Matchups:

Bello Rasaq vs. Abel Hammond
Patrick Sisupalan vs. Yusuf Yakubu
Wisut Bunpeng vs. Mehrajuddin Waddoo
Rueben Senyo vs. Oga Okpara

Jason Morais writes for footballkerala.com

 

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