Manolo Marquez, coach of Hyderabad FC praised Kerala Blasters and coach Ivan Vukamanovic for the last match of the group. The final match of Kerala Blasters, who have secured the play-offs for the season, is against Hyderabad FC.
As the top two runners-up, Hyderabad and Mumbai City had already secured the semi-finals. The top six teams can play in the playoffs. The Blasters are currently in fifth place. Therefore, the Blasters were also assured of playoff entry.
Blasters will face Hyderabad on Sunday in the final match of the league stage. The match will be played at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Kochi. In the final of the last ISL season, Kerala lost the title between the cup and the chund by losing to Hyderabad. Therefore, there are many figures to settle regarding Kerala
Hyderabad coach Manolo Marquez spoke about Blasters and Horns coach Ivan Vukamanov entering the final battle of the league.
“They are definitely here to win and they know very well that if they win they can play the knockouts at home, same with Vukamanovic… He and the team come to the field to win… When these situations come, you can see Vukamanovic changing into a winner’s attitude… For sure, Kerala Blasters have their It is a team that wants to play in front of their fans and win. Of course they will field the main team itself….”
Kerala has another benefit if they beat Hyderabad in the final match. Finish the top four in the points table and thereby play the knockout match at home.
Playoff format this time
Unlike the previous seasons in the Indian Super League, a new playoff format has been prepared this time. Earlier, the top four teams in the points table played the playoffs, but this time the top six teams are playing the playoffs. The top six teams in the league stage qualify for the playoffs. The top two in the table will directly enter the semi-finals. One more knockout match will be played to decide the semi-finalists from the remaining four teams.
The knockout matches will be played between the third and sixth placed teams and between the 4th and 5th placed teams in the points table. The winners will advance to the semi-finals. This time the match is divided into two legs, semi-final and final.
The teams finishing third and fourth in the table are preferred
With Mumbai City and Hyderabad FC securing the semi-finals as the top two, the remaining four teams will face each other in the knockout stage. According to the current points table, Bengaluru, ATK, Kerala Blasters and Odisha are at the third, fourth, fifth and sixth positions respectively.
Another advantage is that those finishing third and fourth in the points table in the league matches can play the knockout matches at home. Therefore, the teams will try to reach the third or fourth place by winning the last match of the league.