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Kerala Blasters blew a 2-0 lead to eventually draw 2-2 against NorthEast United at the GMC Athletic Stadium in Bambolim in Match 7 of Indian Super League (ISL) 2020-21.
Sergio Cidoncha gave Kerala Blasters the lead early in the game, after a great header off a pin-point set-piece delivery from the right flank by Seityasen Singh.
Kerala Blasters' second goal was a controversial one, as it came from a penalty that was controversially awarded. Rakesh Pradhan was penalized for a foul on Lalthathanga Khawlhring, but it looked like the NorthEast man was the one who was fouled. Referee Ranjit Bakshi did not hesitate to point to the spot, and Gary Hooper scored his first ISL goal from it.
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Hooper put his penalty straight down the middle. But he got lucky as the Highlanders goalkeeper Subhashish Roy Chowdhury got a trailing leg on it. The Blasters then went into the break with a two-goal lead.
Gerard Nus' side pulled a goal back straight after half-time as Kerala Blasters didn't defend a corner particularly well, and the ball fell to Kwesi Appiah. He chested it straight towards goal, but Hooper got something on it, only for the Ghanaian to turn it over the line on the rebound.
NorthEast should have had a penalty a few minutes later, when Bakary Kone's overhead kick saw him making no contact with the ball, with Federico Gallego in close attendance. But referee Bakshi didn't point to the spot.
He did just a few seconds later though, when Jessel Carneiro brought down Lalengmawia in the box. Appiah stepped up to take the penalty, but he missed. Looking for the top corner, the Ghanaian striker only managed to hit the crossbar.
Eventually, NorthEast United did find their equalizer, as Gurjinder Kumar's long ball found substitute Idrissa Sylla, who cut across Costa Nhamoinesu, before drilling a finish past Albino.
Kerala Blasters vs Northeast United FC - What we learned
#1 Kibu Vicuna finds more balance in his Kerala Blasters formation
Kerala Blasters head coach Vicuna made changes from the loss to ATK Mohun Bagan. Sahal Abdul Samad went out of the side, along with Prasanth Karuthadathkuni, Ritwik Das, and Nongdamba Naorem.
That enabled Sergio Cidoncha to play in a more advanced role, just behind Gary Hooper, as Rohit Kumar slotted in alongside Vicente Gomez in the deeper midfield position.
The Blasters controlled play for most of the first half, with Cidoncha being an influential part of that.
Apart from the early goal, that came through a set-piece, Cidoncha also set up Hooper for what should have been an easy finish, but the Englishman skied it. Seityasen Singh, who was another one of the first-time starters this season, also delivered an assist for Cidoncha's goal.
#2 Ninthoinganba Meetei continues to impress
Throughout the first half, NorthEast were under pressure, and Kerala Blasters had plenty of chances to score. The Highlanders had one out-ball in that half, and that was Ninthoi on the right flank.
The distance he covered with the ball at his feet to get NorthEast United further up the pitch and relieve themselves of pressure was outstanding.
In the second half, when NorthEast United were the better side, Ninthoi was again an integral part of creating chances. He combined really well with Ashutosh Mehta down the right flank, and found terrific crossing positions.
#3 Flying full-backs are leashed by Kerala Blasters
At the start of the season, the prospect of Nishu Kumar and Jessel Carneiro bombing down the flanks for Kerala Blasters was an exciting one. But somehow, in this game, they were not used correctly by Vicuna.
It felt like both Jessel and Nishu had been instructed to be a lot more conservative, instead allowing the likes of Cidoncha to advance forward from midfield.
Whether that was the right call from Vicuna is up for debate, but what is certain is that both Jessel and Nishu are naturally attacking full-backs, who are at their best when given the license to bomb forward.
Jessel, who assisted five goals for Kerala Blasters last season, really could not find himself in any reasonable crossing position in this game, while Nishu barely ventured across the halfway line.
#4 Substitutions change the game for both teams
When Rohit Kumar and Cidoncha were on the pitch, Kerala Blasters generally had dominance of the ball in the midfield. They moved the ball around with a nice tempo as well.
However, Vicuna said after the game that it was important for him to ensure that he wasn't overworking the players at this stage of the season.
That meant Facundo Pereyra and Prasanth came on to replace Cidoncha and Rohit. That was a match-turning change for Kerala Blasters. They lost control in the midfield, didn't keep possession well enough, and they invited pressure on themselves, as NorthEast piled men forward.
In contrast, Nus made the perfect calls with his substitutions, as he took off Federico Gallego and Appiah to replace them with Idrissa Sylla and Luis Machado.
In the end, Sylla scored the equalizing goal, after a terrific move that got him past Kerala Blasters center-back Costa.
#5 The referee takes center-stage
After excellent performances from the referees in the first few games of the ISL this season, Ranjit Bakshi took center-stage in this game, for the wrong reasons.
He missed giving NorthEast United a clear penalty when Kone's overhead kick saw his feet as high as Gallego's head.
He then compensated for that a couple of moments later, when he gave NorthEast United what looked like a soft penalty, for a foul by Jessel on Apuia.
The equalizing goal from Sylla also looked offside, but the officials missed that as well. One hopes that this does not become a recurring pattern like ISL seasons past.
