Kerala Blasters secured a crucial 3-1 victory over Chennaiyin FC in Saturday’s Indian Super League encounter. The visitors took an early lead through Bernard Mendy but Kerala mounted a wonderful comeback as C.K. Vineeth scored a brace post-Didier Kadio’s key equaliser.
The win takes them to second position in the points table.
#1 Kerala stake claim for a playoff spot
As the referee blew the final whistle, Kerala Blasters coach, Steve Coppell cut a calm and poised figure on the sidelines as the 60,000-strong crowd went bonkers. His side began the Indian Super League without a single win in the first three matches, but ever since, they’ve lost only once in seven outings.
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Credit to the Kerala side as they’ve been persistent throughout the league and their determination was on full display against Chennaiyin. Kerala could have easily lost their way after the referee’s poor decision which denied them an equaliser. Instead, they used that as motivation and looked like a different side altogether from that moment.
Quick, penetrative and efficient, the Blasters displayed grit as Saturday’s win catapults them into second position in the points table.
#2 Bernard Mendy shines as a winger
On the night, Chennayin FC coach Marco Materazzi made five changes to his side. The move wasn’t surprising at all considering his side received a 4-1 drubbing at the hands of Delhi last time around. But the Italian’s decision to deploy Bernard Mendy on the left wing turned heads.
The Frenchman surprisingly, was the source of most of Chennaiyin’s attack’s in the first half. He regularly received the ball and ran with it like a bulldozer. On one occasion, he whipped in a wonderful low cross for Dudu who scuffed his shot over the bar. Mendy was rewarded for his efforts, scoring the opening goal that almost mirrored the one he scored against Delhi.
Mendy carried the ball from his own half, right into the heart of Kerala’s defence, who kept backing off nd finally let loose from inside the box. His shot deflected off Hengbart and nestled into the net.
#3 Referee once again gets it painfully wrong
“As you play more, everybody will improve and that means everybody,” said Mumbai City FC coach, Alexandre Guimaraes about the standard of refereeing in the league. It’s high time that the Indian Super League addresses the dinosaur in the room. We’re half way into the tournament and on far too many occasions, the referee has played the central figure in a football match.
Kerala forward Antonio German found himself through on goal but was cynically tripped just outside the box by Chennaiyin keeper, Kerr. Instead of sending off the Jamaican, the Sri Lankan referee decided to book German for a dive.
Had the forward gone past Kerr, he would have surely scored the equaliser, with an open goal to aim at. Thankfully for Steve Coppell’s side, CK Vineeth bailed out the home side with two well-taken goals.
#4 Chennaiyin FC’s promising 3-4-3 system couldn’t hold on
Marco Materazzi continues to chop and change his line-up and on the night, he decided to adopt a rather adventurous 3-4-3 formation. It worked wonders in the first half as the visitors took the game by the scruff of the neck. The home crowd went silent for large parts of the first 45 minutes.
Every time Chennai attacked, they had seven men in the opposition half. Kerala Blasters were caught on the back foot, outnumbered in midfield, and struggled to keep up with the opposition’s slick passing.
However, as the game progressed, Materazzi’s men found it tought to keep up with the pace of the match as Kerala’s influence kept growing by the minute. Chennai were eventually outdone, as Kerala did to them what they did to the home side in the first half.
#5 Super sub Didier Boris Kadio scores crucial goal
When Kadio took to the field in the second half, questions were raised - not pertaining to his qualities as a footballer but because the man from Ivory Coast decided to wear gloves on a night when the temperature was close to 30 degrees celsius in Kochi.
All that was forgotten within moments of him entering the field. The 26-year-old was a delight to watch and a constant threat down the right wing. He put on the after burners and gave Chennai’s defenders a torrid time. He was duly rewarded for his instant impact, scoring the crucial equaliser in the sixty-sixth minute.
Antonio German shrugged off his marker on the right wing and marauded forward before whipping in an inch perfect low cross for Kadio, who kept his cool to tap in from close distance.
