Chennaiyin FC 3-1 Kerala Blasters: 3 reasons why Owen Coyle's side emerged victorious in the match | ISL 2019-20

#1 Blasters failure to make most of their possession

Kerala Blasters vs Chennaiyin FC (Image: ISL)

The first half and in a sense the whole game was one-sided in terms of goals. Though Chennaiyin FC had three goals against Kerala Blasters' one, all other stats were in favour of the losers. Kerala finished the game with 63% possession in reply to Chennaiyin's 37%. While Eelco Schattorie's side attempted 566 passes, the opposition did not reach even half of it, with only 232.

However, after breaking down the stats, it is observed that most of the ball possession Kerala enjoyed was in their own half. Out of the total passes, a majority was played between the defenders or towards their own goal. The team lacked creativity going forward and rarely did we see useful defense-splitting passes.

Even after keeping possession at the back, the players resorted to long-balls frequently, leading to no end product. Mario Arques and Jeakson Singh had no space to exploit and were forced to pass the ball back to the defense line.

It was undoubtedly a match that the Blasters could give a tough fight given the time they had the ball. Chennai's tight defense and Kerala's below-par finishing ensured a home-side victory.