Hyderabad FC vs Kerala Blasters FC: Who won yesterday's ISL 2021-22 match?
Hyderabad FC locked horns with Kerala Blasters FC for the ISL trophy match at the Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Fatorda. The Nizams were playing their first-ever finals after defeating ATK Mohun Bagan in the semifinals.
Meanwhile, the Yellow Tuskers, who had previously made it to two finals, earned their third ticket after beating ISL shield winners Jamshedpur FC. The match promised to be a thriller given the gates were open to fans after two long years.
Kerala Blasters FC started the match on the front foot while Hyderabad FC struggled to cope up in the early exchanges. The absence of the injured Sahal Abdul Samad didn't make too much of a difference as the Yellow Tuskers enjoyed more time on the ball.
Harmanjot Khabra whipped in a cross towards the far post. But Jorge Pereyra Diaz failed to score as Asish Rai put the pressure on him. As a result, the header was wide off the mark.
The Nizams got into the game after a cooling break. The attack was nicely set up by Souvik Chakrabarti. Joel Chianese received the ball on the right flank and managed to beat the defender by cutting to his left. However, his cross was too heavy and beyond the reach of Bartholomew Ogbeche.
Chianese had to be taken off after the move as the attacking midfielder struggled with a muscle pull. He was replaced by Javier Siverio. Kerala Blasters FC had one more opportunity to break the deadlock before half-time. Adrian Luna's cross was chested down by Harmanjot Khabra, who then eased it off to Jorge Pereyra Diaz. However, the forward's shot hit the crossbar.
Hyderabad FC beat Kerala Blasters FC in penalty shootout
Hyderabad FC started the second half on the front foot. Joao Victor had the first chance of the game. But the Brazilian midfielder's shot was stopped by Prabhsukhan Gill.
Amidst all the attacks from the Nizams, the Blasters hit on the counter to lead the game in the 68th minute, courtesy of a worldie from Rahul KP. Rahul received the ball in midfield and darted towards goal.
The Hyderabad FC defenders retreated to get into shape. This allowed some space to shoot and the attacker launched a low drive to the left of Kattimani. The Nizams goalkeeper tried to stop the attempt but the ball dipped in front of him and crossed the line.
Halicharan Nazary and Sahil Tavora were introduced in place of Aniket Jadhav and Souvik Chakrabarti. Tavora equalized after coming on. The Nizams were awarded a corner that Nazary stepped up to take.
His corner was poorly cleared by a Kerala Blasters FC defender as the ball fell to Sahil, who was just outside the box. He volleyed the ball past Gill to bring the match back to level terms. The match ended on 1-1 after 90 minutes meaning extra-time was needed.
30 minutes of extra time saw both sides struggle to break into the final third as most of the duels were won and lost in midfield. Penalties were needed to decide the eventual winner.
Kerala Blasters FC's Marko Leskovic stepped up to take the first shot and his attempt was too close to Laxmikant Kattimani, who saved it. Joao Victor gave the Nizams the advantage.
Nishu Kumar missed his attempt shooting in the same direction, making it easy for the Hyderabad FC custodian. Substitute Javier Siverio blew his chance by going for power.
Ayush Adhikari drew the scoreline for Kerala Blasters FC but Khassa Camara restored advantage for Hyderabad.
Halicharan Nazary scored while Jeakson Singh's attempt was saved by Kattimani to end the shootout 3-1.
The Hyderabad FC custodian turned hero in the shootout as he guided his side to lift the ISL Trophy.