ISL 2017: Top 5 Kerala Blasters players who have underperformed so far this season

Modified Dec 06, 2017 22:13 IST

Dimitar Barbatov has been underwhelming so far

The Kerala Blasters had finished runners-up in the previous season of the Indian Super League and ahead of this ISL edition, they made quite a splash and signed some big-name players including Dimitar Berbatov, Iain Hume, Wes Brown etc.

However, despite all the money spent, the team has endured a slow start to the campaign. Having played their first three games at home this season, they have failed to register even a single win and even went 194 minutes without scoring a goal.

In this article, we take a look at the players who have been below par so far!

#5 Rino Anto

The 29-year-old right back has been a weak performer this season and has failed to live up to his reputation. With a number of bad passes and poor crosses in the first two games, Anto had a couple of encounters to forget.

Anto seems to have lost a yard of pace as well this season and on a number of occasions, he has left the right side of the Kerala defence exposed and vulnerable to attacks due to his delay in tracking back.

# 4 Jackichand Singh

The fans had a lot of expectation from the winger when he was drafted into the Kerala Blasters and were expecting to see his explosive speed and crossing skills once he took to the field for the side.

However, the Indian has been poor so far, displaying weak control of the ball and bad decision-making on the pitch. On a number of occasions, the winger lost the possession of the ball and appeared lost on the pitch. Jacki, as he is fondly known, has not been able to produce his best till now and fans would certainly expect him to shake off the rust and display his class.

# 3 CK Vineeth

CK Vineeth, one of the biggest fan-favourites, has not been able to produce his best this season. Fitness issues have taken Vineeth backwards in his performance as he struggled with a lack of pace in the first two games.

The India international got a couple of chances in the third game against Mumbai City FC as well but failed to convert any of them due to poor finishing. The Kerala fans must be anxious to see Vineeth replicate his form from the last season and hope that he would be back on his scoring run soon.

# 2 Dimitar Berbatov

One of the biggest stars signed by Indian Super League clubs this season, fans naturally expected a lot from the Bulgarian and were hoping to see a recreation of Berbatov from his Manchester United days.

But, the 36-year-old is playing a totally new role at the Blasters and is still in the process of adapting to his new role. Berbatov was seen totally lost during the first two games, but improved with his performance in the next one.

He has no doubt got an excellent first touch on the ball but has failed to create or score goals so far this season.

#1 Iain Hume

The all-time top scorer in the Indian Super League has struggled this season due to fitness issues and has failed to find the net so far. He started the first two matches for the Blasters but was subbed in the second half due to fitness issues and was then dropped the third game.

On a number of occasions, Hume has been poor in controlling the ball and making a connection with the other players in the team. He has just two shots in three appearances so far and fans expected a lot form the man who took the Kerala Blasters to the finals in the Inaugural season and expect him to create more of an impact in the coming games.

Edited by Shraishth Jain