On Saturday, February 11, the Kanteerava Stadium’s southern derby matchup between Bengaluru FC and Kerala Blasters FC may promise to provide an endless supply of entertainment. In order to make the playoffs, both teams are in top form and will want to finish strongly at the season’s conclusion.
If Odisha FC defeats Hyderabad FC on Friday, the hosts might start their next match outside the top six. They might feel a lot of pressure because of this to win against the Men in Yellow, who have been just as dominant this season.
Qualifying for the playoffs cannot be compromised at any cost, even though neither team is contending for the League Shield. After winning the Durand Cup the year before, the Blues will want to win another trophy. In the meantime, Manjappada will be just as eager as their rivals to experience first-ever success.
Prediction
When these two combatants fight on the same battlefield, the stage always explodes, and we can anticipate another intense battle. With factors like the head-to-head record, current form, and home conditions in their favor, Bengaluru will undoubtedly enter this match as the underdog.
As a result, the visitors will face a difficult night at Sree Kanteerava Stadium, where they also don’t have a good record on the road.
Head-to-Head
The Kerala Blasters won the previous matchup between the two heavyweights in Kochi with a thrilling 3-2 victory. With six victories from eleven games, the Blues have won more than half of their games against the Men in Yellow.
Team News
Simon Grayson has finally discovered the ideal lineup after a number of tinkering attempts that have contributed to their recent success. However, the Scottish manager might make a few rotations to his starting XI in order to keep his most important players fresh for the upcoming challenges. In the meantime, many of the Bengaluru benchwarmers, including Pablo Perez, are still waiting to be included in the team picture before kickoff.
In addition, Kerala Blasters are unlikely to make any substitutions to the starting lineup in order to maintain their winning streak ahead of a challenging game at home. Ivan Vukonamovic, the team’s head coach, has maintained his faith in the 4-2-3-1 playstyle, which is finally paying off handsomely. Due to a viral fever, the Greek-Australian forward Apostolos Giannou was left out of the matchday squad for the Chennaiyin match. He is expected to recover in time for this game.
Predicted Starting XIs
Bengaluru (3-5-2):
- Gurpreet Singh Sandhu;
- Alan Costa, Sandesh Jhingan, Parag Shrivas;
- Prabir Das, Suresh Wangjam, Rohit Kumar, Naorem Roshan Singh;
- Sivashakthi Narayanan, Roy Krishna
Kerala Blasters (4-4-2):
- Prabhsukhan Singh Gill;
- Jessel Carneiro, Victor Mongil, Hormipam Ruivah, Nishu Kumar;
- Jeakson Singh, Ivan Kalyuzhnyi;
- Sahal Abdul Samad, Adrian Luna, Rahul KP;
- Dimitrios Diamantakos
Betting Tips
Bets on who will score in this match can also be interesting. F. Hernández González, Bengaluru’s star player, has already scored five goals in the competition. D. Diamantakos, on the other hand, has scored in nine opportunities to become Kerala Blasters’ leading scorer.
Where to watch
The Disney+Hotstar app will be used to stream the ISL 2023 season live.