The Kerala Blasters fans were on song again (Image Source: ISL)Kerala Blasters were fortunate to hold Mumbai City FC to a 0-0 draw in Kochi as the visitors were denied by the upright and a possible refereeing mistake when Frederic Piquionne was denied a late penalty.The Blasters once again enjoyed great support from their fans as over 61000 supporters made their way to the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Kochi. But the Blasters failed to produce a performance like they did against NorthEast United as Mumbai City FC were the better of the two sides.The game lacked the goals, but it wasn’t short of any talking points, Here are the five major talking points from the game.
#1 Defenses on top as strikers misfire
The game was the season’s first goalless draw and although the game had decent amount of chances, both the defenses were on top of their game. The center back pairing of Cmovs and Bertin which struggled against FC Pune City looked extremely assured against the home side’s strike force. Pavel Cmovs had a great game at the heart of the Mumbai City defense and his reading of the game was immaculate at times.
At the other end the combination of Perone and Ramage worked well again for the Blasters as they managed to keep Mumbai City FC’s mazy runners at bay. Both the goalkeepers Bywater and Majumder made some important saves at different junctures in the game and support their defense well.
But it wasn’t all smooth sailing for the defenders as strikers from both camps had sights of goal but failed to make the most of it. Sanchez Watt blew a great chance to win it for the Blasters at the death, while Sony Norde fired wide after being played through in a great position to score.
#2 Sony Norde sizzles again
There was little fuss when Mumbai City FC signed the rampant Haitian on loan from Mohun Bagan. It was a signing that got lost in the glamour of other big signings. But Nicolas Anelka knew he had a player who could win him matches single handedly. Although Norde hasn’t managed to do so, so far in the ISL this season his pace and skill on that left wing gave Rahul Bheke a torrid time.
Sony Norde opened up the Kerala Blasters defense in the dying minutes when he twisted and turned to pick out Frederic Piquionne inside the box who hit the upright with his outstretched leg. His deliveries of set pieces was also equally good as Subhash Singh almost deflected Sony Norde’s free kick on goal in the first half.
Norde backed his good performance against FC Pune City with another top performance against the Blasters today and he has come out to be Mumbai City FC’s most lethal weapon.
#3 Mumbai City FC robbed by the referee?
Mumbai City FC would be fuming their way back to Mumbai after being denied a full quota of points from Kerala by the referee who seemed to have denied two clear penalties for the visitors at either end of the half. Having had the better of the game coming to a hostile place like Kerala, Mumbai City FC can be forgiven for harbouring a feeling of injustice.
At the very end of the first half, Ramage brought Subhash down after he was late in the tackle inside the penalty box. It appeared slightly soft on the first look, but replays suggested that it was a clear foul and the freekick would have been given had it taken place outside the penalty area.
Fast forward to injury time in the second half Kerala Blaster’s Gurwinder Singh was guilty of barging a hand into Frederic Piquionne’s back while the Frenchman was trying get his head to a cross. The second one was a stonewall penalty and the referee was under pressure to make such a huge call so late in the game.
#4 Rotation a regulation for the ISL teams
With the games coming thick and fast in the Hero Indian Super League, almost all managers have used the length of their squads to keep the players fresh. Kerala Blasters coach Peter Taylor continued this trend as he kept out his stars from the NorthEast United game, Josue and Mohammed Rafi on the bench for this one with an aim to keep them fresh for the long season ahead.
Sanchez Watt who was also one of the scorers from the NorthEast United game was used sparingly by Taylor. The ex-Arsenal man failed to have the desired impact. While the rotation worked for some and failed for few, it has to be said, the absence of Mohammed Rafi and Josue was felt as the Blasters lacked the zip which the duo provided in the game against the Highlanders.
Mumbai City FC too made a host of changes to their team as Nicolas Anelka rested Frederic Piquionne, the goal scorer from the previous game and played Subhash Singh upfront. It worked well for Mumbai City FC as Singh’s energy created plenty of problems for the Kerala Blasters rearguard.
#5 Is Mumbai City FC a better team?
A single point from two away games sees Mumbai City FC languish in the sixth place in the ISL table. But looking at their two away games and the performances put in by Anelka’s men, the Mumbaikars could have easily had the full six points from the two trips to Pune and Kochi. The Blue Devils made Kerala Blasters look ordinary just few days after they were scintillating in their win over the NorthEast United. Even against FC Pune City, Mumbai City dominated the first half and had enough chances to put the game to bed.
It is said that the table never lies and Mumbai City FC are where they are because of their own fate, but with they aren’t as bad as the table makes them look like. With Sunil Chhetri to come into this side, the Mumbai City FC side could look a lot different with the Indian team skipper playing upfront. Watch out for Mumbai City FC. They are the dark horses in this season’s ISL.
