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Starting to find their feet in the league, The Nawabs will look to put in a strong performance in search of their first win of the Indian Super League season when they take on Kerala Blasters at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Kochi on Saturday, November 25.
With two wins in their last three games, the Kerala Blasters currently sit second (on GD) in the points table with 13 points, while Hyderabad FC are also unbeaten in their last three games, but are 11th in the table with just three points on board, going into what will be their fifth away game of the campaign so far.
Coming back from the international break, both teams have had plenty of time to prepare for this game. Nikhil Poojary for Hyderabad FC, Ishan Pandita and Rahul KP for the Kerala Blasters were on National Duty and will hope to be ready in time for this weekend.
Speaking about the preparations ahead of this game, Hyderabad FC First Team Coach Conor Nestor said, “We are very happy with the players’ progress over the international break. Unfortunately, we have a few injury concerns but those who take to the field will be ready.”
Ivan Vukamanovic’s side beat Odisha FC and East Bengal in close games before the break. Adrian Luna has been one of the best players in the league this season while Daisuke Sakai has also been effective in attack.
The Kerala Blasters have also had a few injury concerns from the start of the season. The likes of Marko Leskovic, Milos Drincic and Prabir Das are back in contention for this weekend but Dimitrios Diamantakos is suspended and will miss this game.
Hyderabad FC will also miss the services of Anuj Kumar and Hitesh Sharma, who are on the sidelines. But with Jonathan Moya getting his first ISL goal, Joe Knowles, Mohammad Yasir, Joao Victor and Petteri Pennanen slowly finding their feet, the Nawabs will be a force to reckon with in this game.
But with no win in six games so far, Hyderabad FC need to put in their best to keep the belief going. “We want to ensure our performances on the road energize our supporters to continue to stand by our side and fight for the Yellow and Black together,” said Coach Conor.
The game kicks off at 8pm IST on Saturday, November 25, and will be telecasted live on Sports 18 and VH1, with free streaming on Jio Cinema.
