ISL 2017: Kerala Blasters FC vs NorthEast United FC, Player Ratings
Kerala Blasters registered their first win of ISL 2017 with a slender but hard fought 1-0 victory over NorthEast United on Friday. Local boy CK Vineeth scored the only goal of the night courtesy a bullet header.
Here are the player ratings for Friday's encounter:
Kerala Blasters FC
Paul Rachubka 5/10 - Kerala's keeper hardly had anything to do. Paul burnt minimal calories tonight and did the simple things right.
Lalruatthara 6/10 - With Rino Anto marauding forward down the right, Lalruatthara adopted a far more conservative approach down the left. He was always available when his midfielders needed a passing outlet. Hit the post in the second half.
Nemanja Lakic-Pesic 6/10 - Partnered up with Jhingan extremely well. He cleverly slowed down the game when NorthEast were desperate to get back into it.
Wes Brown 7/10 - Playing as a central defensive midfielder, the former Manchester United man's versatility was present for all to see. Brown kept it simple, won headers and provided some much-needed cushion to his back line.
Sandesh Jhingan 8/10 - Kerala's captain led from the front. He initiated his side's opening goal. More importantly, Jhingan was snapping at the heels of the opposition strikers and refused to let them ponder on the ball.
Rino Anto 9/10 - Delivered a splendid ball for CK Vineeth's bullet header. The right-back was solid throughout the game and his inch-perfect cross for Vineeth was a reward for the positivity he displayed all night long. Made a stunning last-ditch tackle to deny the visitors a sure shot goal.
CK Vineeth 9/10 - Kerala's local boy returned to the starting 11 tonight and put a smile on the fans face with an amazing diving header. That goal had world class written all over it. He continues to prove how important he is.
Siam Hanghal 6/10 - Tonight Hangal played deep in his own half and broke up play extremely well.
Jackichand Singh 6/10 - Helped Pekuson load the right wing with numbers but wasn't as effective.
Mark Sifneos 6/10 - The in-form striker attempted to make inroads but struggled for most parts of the match. He made some clever runs, ran hard and caught NEUFC's back line sleeping on more than one occasion.
Courage Pekuson 7/10 - The midfielder was Kerala's unsung hero tonight. Pekuson covered every blade of grass in the opposition half. Positioned centrally, he made multiple runs down the right wing and left and aided well in attack.
Substitutes
Milan Singh 4/10 - Came on for Jackichand Singh for the final twenty minutes of the match and did well to keep the attack going down the right.
Ian Hume NA - Was introduced with two minutes remaining and made his 50th appearance in the ISL tonight.