Kerala Blasters vs East Bengal highlights, KBFC 2-4 EBFC, ISL 10: Mahesh, Saul among the goals as Red and Gold keep playoff hopes alive

East Bengal keeps playoff hopes alive with a 4-2 win against nine-men Kerala Blasters. 

EBFC sub: IN- Jesin TK OUT- Mahesh 

Off the crossbar: Felicio goes for a curling effort and almost scores as the ball rattles the crossbar and comes back into play. 

EBFC sub: IN- Felicio OUT- Crespo

Seven minutes added at the end of the second-half!

Mahesh again finds himself in a good position inside the box after receiving a pass from Vazquez. He has time to shoot and lashes a shot at Karanjit. The Blasters keeper has no chance as the ball rattles the roof of the net. 

What is happening here? After an own goal by Daisuke, Hijazi has now scored an own goal at the other end. Sandeep breaks on the counter and tried to find Pandita with a low cross. Hijazi tries to intercept the cross and ends up putting the ball inside his own net. 

Mahesh goes for a curler from the left side of the box. Daisuke tries to clear the ball with his head but ends up putting it inside his own net. East Bengal doubles its lead.

Off the post - Rakip’s cross is met by Vazquez who heads the ball towards goal. It is not the most powerful of headers but the placement almost turns out to be perfect, as the ball hits the post and comes back into play. 

East Bengal players are being allowed to pass the ball among themselves in their own half. Kerala Blasters players are pegged back, defending in numbers. 

KBFC sub: IN- Saurav OUT- Rahul KP

RED CARD - Naocha, already on a yellow card, sees a straight red for violent conduct. He headbutts Aman, after the latter snatched the ball from him with a tackle. That is a straight red card every day of the week. Kerala Blasters will finish the match with nine players. 

Kerala Blasters has gifted the lead to East Bengal here. Leskovic is caught napping and Aman makes a bursting run, snatching the ball away from the Blasters defender. Aman makes his way inside the box and keeps his calm to square the ball to Saul, who slots the ball inside the net with a first-time finish. 

Nishu finds himself in a good position again and this tine, shoots on the volley. The effort has power but lacks direction and the ball goes out of play. 

EBFC sub: IN - Aman OUT - Vishnu

Off the crossbar- Rahul KP finds Daisuke with a cutback and the Japanese goes for a first-time shot. He catches his shot well and almost scores as the ball hits the underside of the crossbar and comes back into play. Kerala inches away from regaining the lead. The replay shows that Gill had got a slight touch to guide the ball towards the crossbar. 

Nishu spots Saul at the far-post and finds him with an aerial pass. Saul does well to bring it down and then goes for the cutback, hoping to find a teammate. But Leskovic is there to make a timely clearance. 

KBFC sub: IN- Pandita OUT- Cernych

Khabra finds Nishu with a pinpoint delivery inside the box. Nishu times his run to perfection to stay onside. Nishu chest the ball to bring it down and then goes for a shot at the near-post. But he slices his effort and the ball goes out of play. That is a chance wasted for the Red and Gold. 

East Bengal is having a long spell of possession here, as it tries to break the Kerala defence. Cleiton sends the ball into the box with a driving cross but Hormipam gets the ball to safety with a clearing header. 

Mahesh gets the ball in a good position inside the box. Instead of going for the shot, he aims to find someone at the far-post with a driving cross but it is blocked. 

EBFC subs: IN- Khabra, Vazquez OUT- Sayan, Pantic

KBFC sub: IN- Azhar OUT- Diamantakos

Scores level at 1-1 as the second-half gets underway at the Nehru Stadium in Kochi. 

Goals from Fedor Cernych and Saul Crespo keep the scores level at 1-1 at the break. 

We will be back after a short break. Stay tuned for live updates from the second-half!

Saul keep his cool and slots the ball inside the net from the spot to score the equaliser for East Bengal. 

EBFC PENALTY - Karanjit charges off his line and tries to stop Vishnu from getting to the ball inside the box. He was late in his challenge and the referee points to the spot. Penalty for East Bengal. 

Four minutes added at the end of the first-half!

RED CARD- Jeakson Singh sees his second yellow card of the match and gets his marching orders. That is a blow just before half-time and East Bengal will think that it has got a lifeline. 

Cleiton pings in a good cross inside the box. Hijazi is the main target and jumps for the ball, but cannot get to it. 

Noacha makes a good decoy run and gets the ball on the left flank. With all the time and space, he goes for a cross from deep, but Gill does well to come off his line and collect the ball. 

Vishnu takes a shot from the edge of the box. The shot lacks pace but Karanjit still ends up spilling it. For a second, it looked like Vishnu would score on the rebound but Sandeep reacts well to clear the ball to safety. 

The ball sets up nicely for Vibin and he goes for a shot from a long way out. He does not catch it well and skies his effort. Diamantakos is not impressed at Vibin’s decision to shoot from there. 

Play resumes!

Kerala Blasters with a 1-0 lead as the match halts for a drinks break!

Rahul KP has time and space on the left flank but does not go for the early cross. He makes an inward run, sucking in two defenders. He then, tries to flash a cross across the face of the goal and find a teammate, but the ball ricochets off him and goes out of play.

Cernych times his run to perfection as he is played a through ball. East Bengal keeper Gill rushes out to collect the ball but fails to hold on to it. With an empty net in front of him, Cernych shoots on the turn to score with an easy finish. 

Nishu Kumar looks to find a teammate with a cross from the left flank but it is not the best of deliveries as the ball is anticipated. 

KBFC booking: Naocha catches Vishnu with a late challenge from the back and he will get a yellow card. 

Daisuke wins the ball in the final third and tries to make a run at goal, but Hijazi recovers well and steals the ball from the Blasters attacker. 

Cleiton goes for goal from the freekick but this time, cannot get his ball over the wall. 

KBFC booking: Hormipam sees a yellow card for his challenge on Mahesh. He will miss the next match. 

Hormipam clatters against Mahesh in a bid to stop his forward run. East Bengal has a freekick in Cleiton Silva territory. 

Cleiton Silva goes for a curler from the edge of the box and almost hits the target, as the ball goes past the post. Karanjit was worried for a second there, diving at full-stretch. 

East Bengal has enjoyed a positive start and has also created a positive chance from Sayan’s cross. Kerala Blasters has been patient in its buildup. It is clear that Vukomanovic’s men will not take any early risks. 

Sayan does well to get past his marker and drives in a low cross in the centre of the box. Karanjit gets a hand to it but cannot hold on to it. The rebound falls to Saul, whose shot is blocked. An early chance for East Bengal. 

The ISL 10 match between Kerala Blasters and East Bengal has kicked-off at the Nehru Stadium in Kochi. The Red and Gold need to win to keep playoff hopes alive, while the Blasters have already secured a playoff spot. 

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Multiple injuries and the hot weather have posed problems for Kerala Blasters this season and the tight Indian Super League (ISL) schedule has only added to Ivan Vukomanovic’s headache. 

As the Blasters meet East Bengal at the Nehru Stadium here on Wednesday, coach Vukomanovic will be working out strategies to keep his players fresh for the matches ahead and the playoffs.

Read the full preview HERE

ISL 2023-24: Injury-stricken Kerala Blasters looks for league-double over East Bengal

KBFC vs EBFC: Kerala Blasters (30 points), which is are fifth in the standings, had beaten East Bengal (currently 11th with 18 points) 2-1 when they last met on November 4.

When and Where will Kerala Blasters vs East Bengal ISL 10 be played?

The Indian Super League match, Kerala Blasters vs East Bengal, will be played at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Kochi, Kerala on Wednesday, April 3 at 7:30 PM IST. 

Where to watch Kerala Blasters vs East Bengal in ISL 10?

The Indian Super League match between Kerala Blasters and East Bengal will be live telecast on the Sports18 SD and HD channel. It can also be live-streamed on JioCinema.