ISL 2017/18, Match 54: Kerala Blasters vs FC Goa, Player Ratings
Hosts Kerala Blasters began their home game against FC Goa on the seventh position, and were looking for their third win in four matches, but stumbled to a 2-1 defeat against FC Goa at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Kochi.
The Blasters, under new manager David James, would have been looking to climb closer to the top half of the ISL table.
FC Goa emerged victorious in an exciting clash that saw a good back and forth on the pitch. After going down early in the match, Kerala Blasters recovered well to equalize in the first half. The second half saw good competition but Goa edged ahead with Edu Bedia's match-winning headed goal to seal the three points for the visitors.
Kerala Blasters FC
Paul Rachubka (5/10) - The Kerala keeper was called into action early when a shot from Lanzarote hit the woodwork. He was beaten by Coro early on but had a decent showing after that. He produced a brave save to keep Coro out in the second half of the match but was beaten by a superb header from Edu Bedia.
Rino Anto (4/10) - The right-back who returned from injury after missing the last match against Jamshedpur FC had an unfortunate outing as he was stretchered after the half-hour mark and was replaced by Nemanja Lakic-Pesic.
Wes Brown (6/10) - The Englishman had a decent outing in defence after the initial Goa onslaught in the first half. Brown was a calming presence at the back as he organized the defence to keep the creative Goan attack in check. He switched to the right-back position when Rino Anto had to be substituted out for an injury problem.
Sandesh Jhingan (7/10) - The Kerala skipper was his usual reliable self as he displayed great commitment in all of his tackles and clearances. He kept the threat of Ferran Corominas in check and won a lot of balls in the air as Goa looked for holes in the Kerala defence.
Lalruatthara (5.5/10) - The left-back was a feisty figure tonight as he was called into action by the Goa wingers on many occasions with their overlapping runs. He was a tad rough in his tackling tonight and was lucky to escape being booked for the second time.
Milan Singh (6/10) - The midfielder had a slow start as he struggled to string together passes and lost the ball on many occasions. He recovered well as the game went on and did well to break up a lot of Goa plays with his back-tracking.
Siam Hanghal (7/10) - The former Mumbai FC midfielder came very close to scoring when his effort hit the woodwork and went over. He provided the assist for C.K Vineeth's goal in the first half with a headed flick. He did well in the defensive midfielder role as Goa kept on attacking through the centre for the winning goal.
C.K Vineeth (8/10) - The Kerala man got the sides level in the first half when he latched onto a ball from Siam Hanghal and slotted it past the rushing Kattimani. He put in an incredible shift tonight and covered a lot of distance as he kept going in search of his second goal of the night.
Courage Pekuson (6.5/10) - The Ghanian midfielder wasn't in the thick of things throughout the match but he played a good supporting role as he passed the ball well around the park. He also tracked back to defend whenever the team needed his services.
Jackichand Singh (6/10) - The former Mumbai City FC winger played a good supporting in the Kerala midfield with his runs on the right flank and even put in a couple of crosses into the box for Hume and Vineeth to attack.
Iain Hume (7.5/10) - Iain Hume was again an incredibly lively presence in the Kerala attack as he played just behind Vineeth and operated all around the midfield. He went in with full commitment into the aerial duels and tried to find through-balls for Vineeth to attack.
Substitutes:
Nemanja Lakic-Pesic (6/10) - The tall Serbian defender came on in the 36th minute when Rino Anto went out injured. He slotted into the Kerala defence as Wes Brown moved to the right-back spot.
Prashanth K (4.5/10) - The young winger came on in place of Milan Singh as Kerala ingested some pace into the attack as they searched for the equalizing goal.
Mark Sifneos (4/10) - The lanky striker came on in the added time as Kerala went in search of the equalizer at the end.