New Delhi, Jan 4 Punjab FC will aim to complete a league double over Kerala Blasters FC as the Shers will welcome the Tuskers in the Indian Super League (ISL) 2024-25 fixture which will be played at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium here on Sunday. Punjab FC started the season with an emphatic 2-1 victory away at Kochi and will look to emulate that performance to climb up into the playoff positions in the table. Punjab currently occupy the eighth position in the table with 18 points while the Blasters are two places below with 14 points.
Speaking ahead of the match, PFC head coach Panagiotis Dilmperis said about the recent results of the team, “We did not play badly in these matches but the results were not that we expected. Tomorrow’s match is a new challenge and we will take the field with new vigour. My players are hungry and confident and I hope that they will put their best foot forward.”
Both teams haven’t had favourable results going into the first match of the New Year. Punjab lost their last three fixtures, the recent one being an unfortunate 1-3 loss to table toppers Mohun Bagan Super Giant on Boxing Day while Kerala Blasters have lost four of their last five matches, the latest being a 0-1 away loss to Jamshedpur FC.
Punjab FC will be missing the services of four of their foreign players, Luka Majcen and Ezequiel Vidal to suspension and Filip Mrzljak and Ivan Novoselec due to injury. Panagiotis Dilmperis will have the chance to deep dive into his pool of young Indian players who have been impressive this season. Asmir Suljic will be the only available foreign player for selection in the upcoming fixture.
“We have a very good squad of Indian players and they are more than capable of giving us a positive result for the team. We have already seen, how youngsters like Pramveer have played in the last match and the others will also do the same”, the coach said while being asked about having just one foreigner in the lineup on Sunday.
Punjab FC and Kerala Blasters have faced each other five times before, including twice in the ISL last season and they possess a similar record of two wins each and the 2024 Durand Cup group stage match ending in a 1-1 draw. Last season, the Blasters scraped through with a 1-0 victory while The Shers stunned them in Kochi with a 3-1 victory.
Punjab FC will look to put their recent results behind them and start the New Year on a high with a young and energetic all-Indian line-up that will take the field against an inconsistent Kerala Blasters side.
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