Chennaiyin FC 3-1 Kerala Blasters: 3 reasons why Owen Coyle's side emerged victorious in the match | ISL 2019-20
Chennaiyin FC and Kerala Blasters renewed their rivalry in the Indian Super League with an enthralling 3-1 scoreline in favour of the hosts at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Chennai.
Owen Coyle's side stormed into the lead in the 4th minute as Rafael Crivellaro exposed the Blasters defense to set up Andre Schembri on goal. Kerala Blasters tried taking control of the game in the minutes that followed and were fairly rewarded with a goal in the 15th minute. Bartholomew Ogbeche and Mario Arques combined well from a set-piece for the former to slot a shot from outside the box. However, the goal was the end of the story for the visitors as Chennaiyin dominated the scoreboard for the remainder of the game.
The 25th minute saw a controversial goal being allowed to CFC, only to rectified by the referee after a few minutes. The hosts duly replied with a goal through Lallianzuala Chhangte at the half-hour mark. Blasters gifted the third goal with a lack of understanding between the keeper and defenders. Chhangte lobbed the ball towards goal seeing TP Rehenesh out of his line and Nerijus Valskis rushed towards the end to redirect it goalwards.
Blasters had very little activity at the offensive end for a major part of the game. Bartholomew Ogbeche's injury at the end of the first half only added to Eelco Schattorie's woes. As the scoreline continued the same in the second half, Chennaiyin FC bagged their second win of the season. Here are three reasons that led to this result.
#3 Blasters schoolboy errors in defense
Kerala Blasters have had a season to forget at the back this season. While the previous outings showed glimpses of rejuvenation in defense, this game shattered all such hopes. The back-line can be blamed for all the three goals the side conceded.
The first goal came after Crivellaro beat Jeakson Singh with ease and left all the defenders as spectators. Both the centre-backs were out of position to intercept the cross that followed. Lack of communication between the goalkeeper and defenders paved the way for the third goal. No yellow shirt was in place to clear the ball after it hit the bars from Chhangte's lob.
The backline with Vlatkor Drobarov and Raju Gaikwad at the heart of the defense and Jessel Carneiro and Mohammed Rakip on the flanks, disappointed with poor understanding and coordination. The players could not clear the ball on time and often kept it in their own half, failing to build from the back.