Indian Super League 2016: NorthEast United to take on Kerala Blasters in season opener

[caption id=“attachment_1765853” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Kerala Blasters will travel to Guwahati to take on NorthEast United in the ISL 4 season opener. Sportzpics[/caption] New Delhi: NorthEast United FC and Kerala Blasters FC will kick off the third season of the Indian Super League (ISL) in Guwahati, which will also host the opening ceremony. By awarding Guwahati the rights to host ISL 2016 opening ceremony, Football Sports Development wishes to celebrate North East’s contribution to the development of Indian football and recognise the potential it has in shaping the future of the game in the country. On 1 October, Indira Gandhi Stadium, Sarusajai, with a capacity of 30,000, will witness ISL teams, owners, celebrities and performers put up a visual extravaganza at the opening ceremony. The host club NorthEast United will be led by newly-appointed coach Nelo Vingada while Kerala Blasters FC will be led by Steve Coppell. Both the franchises failed to qualify for the semi-finals of the previous edition, with the Kerala Blasters finishing bottom of the pile. The Highlanders on the other hand had put up a much stronger show and had only missed on the semi-final berth by a whisker. Both under new management, Kerala Blasters and NorthEast United would be looking to get their campaign off to a good start. The hosts though will be vary of their visitors who ran out 4-1 winners in the corresponding fixture last season. With inputs from Agencies