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Chhetri header wins Bengaluru a captivating contest against Kerala

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Bengaluru, Karnataka: Bengaluru FC edged out Kerala Blasters FC 1-0 at the Sree Kanteerava Stadium in Bengaluru on Saturday to register their second victory of the Hero Indian Super League (Hero ISL) 2019-20. Blues’ captain Sunil Chhetri scored the only goal of the match in the second-half and helped his team register their fourth triumph over their bitter Southern rivals in five meetings. For Kerala, it was another unsuccessful attempt at finding their first-ever Hero ISL victory against Bengaluru.

Kerala, despite being away to the home of the reigning champions, took the initiative and made a bright start. The Blues responded soon enough as both sides traded phases of dangerous possession early on. The biggest chance in the opening 15 minutes fell Kerala’s way. A nice bit of interplay between Bartholomew Ogbeche and Messi Bouli, opened up space for the latter inside the box. The Cameroonian forward tried to fizz in a dangerous cross for Ogbeche. The Kerala skipper tried to meet it at full stretch but was centimeters short of getting the telling touch on the ball.

Approaching the 30-minute mark, Bengaluru managed to get the ball in the Kerala net after Raphael Augusto headed in an inch-perfect Udanta Singh cross. But the goal was eventually disallowed since the officials deemed Udanta had run it out of play before putting it in the box.

Shortly after, Gurpreet Singh Sandhu’s sloppy clearance almost opened up another opportunity for Ogbeche but the Bengaluru custodian made amends by coming out and hoofing the ball away just in time. In the 36th minute, the home team had a golden opportunity to take the lead as Augusto cut one back for Albert Serran, who was lingering inside the Kerala box following a corner. It only needed a proper nod to direct the cross into the Kerala net, but the ball was just behind Serran and the Spaniard ended up heading it over, much to the anguish of the home fans.

Six minutes later, it was the away fans’ turn to feel the anguish as Bouli stayed on side from a TP Rehenesh goal kick and was free on goal. With just Gurpreet to beat the striker ended up skying his effort into the South Stand. The first 45 minutes, perhaps miraculously, ended goalless.

The second-half had the same intensity as the first-half as the two sides traded blows. As the match progressed, however, Bengaluru slowly grew into the contest and kept knocking at the door. The Kerala defence was eventually unlocked in the 55th minute from a set piece. Dimas Delgado’s floated corner found Sunil Chhetri inside the Kerala box and the 35-year-old made no mistakes as he buried his diving header into the goal to score the match’s first and his fourth Hero ISL goal against Kerala.

The home team could have gone two up minutes later but Dimas’ shot was valiantly blocked off by Raju Gaikwad. With the control of the match seemingly slipping away, Eelco Schattorie introduced Sahal Abdul Samad from the bench following the hour-mark in an attempt to inject some more creativity in midfield. The away side came close to an equaliser in the 69th minute after Bouli picked Serran’s pocket on the wing and found Rahul KP inside the Bengaluru box. The youngster did well to make space for a shot in the crowded box but dragged it wide.

Bengaluru, meanwhile, kept probing for the second goal and it took Rehenesh’s toes to deny Augusto in the 74th minute. Kerala did manage to get the ball in Bengaluru’s goal in added time, as Ogbeche tapped in Rahul KP’s cross, but the goal was disallowed as the latter was ruled offside.

With the win, Bengaluru moved to nine points – level with table toppers ATK, who will be in action on Sunday.

(ISL Media)

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Indian Super League

Kerala, Odisha settle for a point as injuries take a toll

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Kochi, Kerala: Kerala Blasters FC remained without a win for the third consecutive match following a goalless draw against Odisha FC at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium here on Friday.

The Hero Indian Super League contest was marred by injuries to key players from both teams as Jairo Rodriguez, Raphael Messi Bouli and Aridane Santana had to be substituted in the first half. The changes affected the pace of the game that ultimately ended without a winner.

Blasters and Odisha now have four points each from as many games and occupy the fifth and sixth position on the league table.

Kerala, who were already hampered by injuries this season, suffered a major blow in the fourth minute when captain Jairo Rodriguez went down injured. He was replaced by Abdul Hakku.

However, the home side continued to press high up the field to try and take the game to their opponents, but Odisha were well organized at the back.

A cautious period of play early on came to a halt when a head-on collision inside the box following a corner-kick left Aridane Santana and Messi Bouli requiring medical attention. Following a long pause, the game resumed with Mohammed Rafi and Carlos Delgado replacing the injured players.

With both teams struggling to create clear-cut chances, Sahal Abdul Samad took matters into his own hands as he embarked on a stellar solo run after picking up the ball from the right flank. The midfielder outfoxed three defenders before Narayan Das brought him down inside the box, but the referee rejected vociferous appeals for a penalty.

Blasters were the better side in the first half, although by fine margins. Mohammed Rafi’s drilled cross into the box from the right was met by Rahul KP whose audacious volley failed to test goalkeeper Francisco Dorronsoro.

The teams struggled to raise the tempo and keep hold of the ball after the break as well. Odisha threatened when Jerry Mawihmingthanga’s cross put TP Rehenesh in a spot of bother. The goalkeeper spilled the ball inside the box but Nandhakumar Sekar hit the rebound into the side-netting.

Prasanth Karuthadathkuni had the crowd up on their feet when he cut in from the right flank and pulled the trigger, only to send the speculative effort over the bar.

There were a couple more chances at either end as the game wound down, but a goal remained elusive.

With four minutes left, a Prasanth cross from the left was flicked towards the far post by second-half substitute Bartholomew Ogbeche for Rahul whose firm shot was kept out by Dorronsoro. Daniel Lalhlimpuia, at the other end, spurned a chance as well as both teams settled for a point.

(ISL Media)

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Indian Super League

Marcelinho bends it for Hyderabad who beat Kerala in style

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Hyderabad, Telangana: Hyderabad FC came back from a goal down to register their first win in the Hero Indian Super League as they edged past Kerala Blasters FC 2-1 at the GMC Balayogi Athletic Stadium on Saturday.

Rahul KP (34’) gave Kerala the lead in the first half but two second half strikes from Marko Stankovic (54’) and Marcelinho (81’) sealed full points for the hosts with a delightful free-kick.

Kerala were jolted right at the beginning when central defender Gianni Zuiverloon picked up an injury. Raju Gaikwad made his debut for the club, replacing the Dutch defender.

The visitors were the more dominant side from the beginning and were close to breaking the deadlock in the 15th minute when young Rahul KP tried his luck from distance. But his effort flew just above the crossbar.

The hosts had a chance of their own when Marcelinho got to Rohit Kumar’s through ball inside the box. He twisted and turned in a bid to go past Mohammed Rakip, but the Kerala right-back stood firm and snatched the ball away from the Brazilian.

Kerala custodian TP Rehenesh almost gifted Hyderabad the lead in the 33rd minute when he failed to control Gaikwad’s back pass with his chest. Abhishek Halder was in position and tried to tap in but luckily for Kerala the ball went wide.

Hyderabad would regret that miss immediately. Rehenesh’s goalkick was unconvincingly cleared by Shankar Sampingiraj and the ball fell for Sahad Abdul Samad. The midfielder lobbed the ball for Rahul who found the back of the net with a first time shot.

Bartholomew Ogbeche could have doubled the lead in the 42nd minute when he received a through ball from Moustapha Gning and found himself one on one with the goalkeeper, but a heavy touch allowed Kamaljit to rush out of his line and collect the ball.

Hyderabad started the second half on a brighter note and came close to equalising in the 48th minute. Marcelinho created the chance with a brilliant run down the left flank and beat Gaikwad with pace before cutting in and squaring the ball for Robin Singh. However, the striker unnecessarily complicated an easy tap in and squandered the opportunity.

The hosts restored parity in the 54th minute when Gning tripped Mohammad Yasir inside the Kerala box to give away a penalty. Marko Stankovic duly converted the spot-kick.

At the other end, Hyderabad should have taken the lead in the 76th minute when Marcelinho received a through ball on the left flank. The Brazilian went past Jairo Rodrigues comfortably and attempted to curl the ball into the net at the far post but his shot went wide.

Marcelinho soon made up for his mistake by converting a classy free-kick in the 81st minute. The hosts were awarded the free-kick after Gning had brought down Nikhil Poojary with a poor challenge. The Brazilian found the back of the net with a curling left-footer to hand Phil Brown’s side their first win of the season.

(ISL Media)

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Indian Super League

Mumbai City open win account in Kochi

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Kochi, Kerala: A late goal from Amine Chermiti saw Mumbai City FC stun Kerala Blasters FC in a closely-fought Hero Indian Super League clash at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium here on Thursday.

The teams had several half-chances to break the deadlock but lacked an end product for most of the game until Chermiti’s smart 82nd-minute finish settled the contest.

While the result meant Mumbai start their season with a win, it was also their first-ever win over Kerala Blasters in Kochi.

Kerala Blasters struggled to test Amrinder Singh early on while Mumbai resorted to aerial balls and floating crosses into the box at the other end.

A Diego Carlos cross into the box from the right flank in the 10th minute had the home defence under pressure but Mohamed Larbi’s weak header fell straight into the hands of goalkeeper Bilal Khan.

Mumbai continued to threaten and Carlos outpaced Jessel Carneiro on the right flank again in the 19th minute. This time around, the former FC Pune City player attempted a powerful strike from a tight angle, forcing Bilal Khan to come up with a reflex save at his near post.

At the other end, a foul by Souvik Chakrabarti allowed Sergio Cidoncha to swing a free-kick into the box from the left a few minutes later. Bartholomew Ogbeche got to the end of it at the far post but headed wide from close. The hosts had another chance at the stroke of half-time when Cidoncha whipped another one in from a similar position, but Jairo’s powerful header was saved by Amrinder Singh at the near post.

Mumbai started on the front foot after the change of ends and went close in the 53rd minute. Larbi’s cross from the left found Modou Sougou unmarked in the centre of the box but the Senegalese striker’s first-time shot flew wide.

The game continued to swing from one half-chance to another at both ends. Minutes after the hour mark, a Cidoncha corner was headed clear by the Mumbai defence, straight to Carneiro who unleashed a thunderous, outside-the-boot strike that flew just over Amrinder’s goal.

Just when it seemed like spoils would be shared in Kochi, Chermiti stunned the Kerala crowd with a late goal. Souvik Chakrabarti played a low cross into the box from the right flank which the Kerala defence failed to clear. The Tunisian striker, who was waiting in the centre, slotted the ball into the net with a fantastic first-time shot.

In a last-gasp attempt to get back into the game, Ogbeche latched on to a chip by Sahal Abdul Samad inside the box but the Nigerian’s swivelling strike from close-range was miraculously saved by Amrinder as Mumbai returned home with three points.

(ISL Media)

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Indian Super League

Kerala Blasters keen to hit the ground running

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Kochi, Kerala: Season six of the Hero Indian Super League is all set to kick off with a blockbuster fixture which sees two-time finalists Kerala Blasters FC take on two-time winners ATK at the Jawaharlal Nehru international stadium in Kochi on Sunday.

With a huge and expectant fanbase looking on eagerly, Kerala Blasters’ new coach Eelco Schattorie knows that he has a considerable task on his hands.

The Dutchman, after a successful season with NorthEast United, is expected to work his magic with the Kochi-based outfit. And what better way than starting with a win over ATK who have one of the strongest squads on paper this year.

“Opening games are always difficult, there is going to be huge expectations, that is part of the game. It is all about stabilising the team, I think we are ready to face ATK. They have a very strong squad and are one of the best teams in the league,” Schattorie said.

Blasters last reached the play-offs in 2016 and have made quite a few managerial appointments in their bid to reach the last four in recent times. Schattorie is aware of the fact and is hoping that he can bring an element of stability to the club.

“ATK, NEUFC and Kerala have had the most amount of coaches. So, it is all about getting stability. Here, I have a good relationship with management. I think we have better depth than I had last year.

“It is not like a tomato soup where I can copy all the ingredients (from a successful season with NorthEast). The whole team is almost new. But I am ready to take up the challenge.”

Kerala Blasters have revamped their entire foreign contingent, bringing in some established names like Bartholomew Ogbeche, Gianni Zuiverloon, Mario Arques and the likes apart from a few promising players like Raphaël Messi Bouli.

They also have a few young Indian stars like Sahal Abdul Samad. But the absence of Sandesh Jhingan will be a huge blow for them. Though they have brought in a replacement in Raju Gaikwad, Schattorie concedes that their preparations have been far from ideal.

“We have a great team, we bought good foreigners. Preseason was not how I wanted it to be. We did not have the perfect preparation. We had some foreign players arriving with injuries. We are 2-3 weeks behind, we need to catch up.

“I have worked with Raju before and we needed another centre back with experience. His fitness is not up to the mark and he didn’t have a preseason. But the atmosphere is in the squad is good.”

(ISL Media)

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