Ratings: Jorge Pereyra Diaz shines against former club in Mumbai City's win

This was Kerala Blasters' third consecutive defeat this season.

Mumbai City FC defeated Kerala Blasters 2-0 at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Kochi on Friday courtesy two first-half goals. Mehtab Singh and Jorge Pereyra Diaz netted once each to help Des Buckingham’s men garner three points from an important away fixture.

The Islanders were absolutely dominant in the opening 45 minutes but they showed equal composure when put on the back-foot in the second-half to keep a clean-sheet and emerge victorious in a closely-contested match. Without further ado, let us take a look at the player ratings for both teams.

Mumbai City FC (By Tarkesh Jha)

Phurba Lachenpa – 7

Lachenpa put in another solid performance as he made four saves along with a couple of clearances and punches to keep the Kerala Blasters’ attackers at bay. He looked a bit tentative defending crosses in the second-half, but managed to hold the backline together to take away another clean-sheet for the season.

Rahul Bheke – 6

Bheke recorded a couple of successful tackles and three clearances along with five interceptions to round up a robust defensive display. He took one shot on target as the skipper looked to occasionally contribute meaningfully moving ahead in the flank as well.

Rostyn Griffiths – 6

Griffiths seems to be settling well at the heart of the defence. He played a key role in helping Mumbai City build offensive moves from the back with a 95 percent passing accuracy. The towering centre-back also lodged three successful tackles to neutralize Kerala’s attacking threat.

Mehtab Singh – 7.5

Mehtab continued his good run of form and he doubled up his solid defensive work with a fantastic goal to open the scoring for the Islanders on Friday. He kept his lines clean by making six clearances to ably support Griffiths at the centre of the back-four.

Sanjeev Stalin – 6.5

With four tackles and five clearances, Stalin really put in the hard yards and delivered an assuring performance from the left flank. However, keeping up with his performances so far, the 21-year-old did not make any significant contribution in attack in this game.

Lalengmawia Ralte – 7

Apuia acted as a brilliant bridge between the defence and the attack as he helped Mumbai take control over the tempo of the proceedings from deep inside the midfield. He made five tackles along with a couple of clearances along with creating two goal-scoring chances as well.

Ahmed Jahouh – 6

In Alberto Noguera’s absence, it was Ahmed Jahouh who took upon the mantle of helping Mumbai City transition seamlessly from defence to attack. He broke down Kerala Blasters’ offensive moves with seven tackles and induced some much-needed creativity with his forward passes to help Mumbai assert their dominance in the game.

Greg Stewart – 6

Stewart won multiple fouls as he constantly acted as a threat to Kerala Blasters’ backline. He played a critical role in forming incisive passing patterns in the final third but couldn’t get a goal or an assist to his name this night.

Lallianzuala Chhangte – 6

Chhangte kept Jessel Carneiro in check with his sprints and footwork from the right flank. He took four shots at goal but would have wanted to be a little bit more precise with respect to the final deliveries inside the box.

Bipin Singh – 6

Bipin made quite a few accurate runs forward to get at the end of Stewart’s passes in the final third. The winger didn’t have a goal contribution to his name but locked in a good performance by his usually high standards altogether.

Jorge Pereyra Diaz – 7

After a couple of indifferent outings, Jorge Pereyra Diaz finally came onto his own against his former club by showing tremendous composure inside the box to put in a neat finish for Mumbai’s second goal of the night. The team looked more threatening in attack with him as the focal point of the frontline.

Substitutes:

Alberto Noguera – 6

Noguera placed himself easily into the middle of park and was sharp with his passes and defensive moves to help Mumbai City wither Kerala’s brief period of dominance in the second-half.

Mourtada Fall – 5

Fall did the job required off him by aiding Mumbai avoid any last-minute goal-scoring threat from the Blasters.

Vinit Rai – 5

The coach introduced Rai’s fresh legs towards the fag end of the game and that helped Mumbai City infuse more energy in the midfield during the important conclusive phase of the game.

Vikram Pratap Singh – N.A.

Gurkirat Singh Gill – N.A.

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Kerala Blasters (by Sooraj Saji)

Prabhsukhan Gill - 5.5

Crumbled with his distribution under pressure and could have possibly done better for the team under the bar. Still, far from the problem.

Harmanjot Khabra - 6

Done better compared to the previous match. Satisfactorily kept Mumbai City FC's pacy winger Bipin Singh inside his pockets.

Victor Mongil - 5.5

Struggled to keep the high-line defence intact against the heat of the game. Made six recoveries and three interceptions in the game. Got subbed-out in the 70th minute.

Marko Leskovic - 5

Terrible positioning during both goals, playing the attackers onside. Struggled to keep up against the speedy wingers of Mumbai City FC. Could have done better for the Jorge Pereyra Diaz goal.

Jessel Carneiro - 5.5

The Kerala Blasters captain had an average night. A bit clumsy in the earlier phase of the game. Had some good chances in the final third but couldn't connect them to the forwards.

Adrian Luna - 6.5

The Uruguayan got into some decent positions but his decision-making let him down in several instances. His one sure-shot goal was hit by the woodwork. Had 64 touches in the game.

Puitea - 6

Made a fair few runs from deep, but looked far from his best. Maintained a passing accuracy of 90%. Subbed-out in the 80th minute.

Jeakson Singh - 6

Played a content game in the defensive midfielder role. He put in a subpar performance. Had 70 touches in the game and made four interceptions.

Rahul KP - 7

Playing in the starting XI did not particularly hold back Rahul from displaying his creativity. He was an energetic presence in the wing for KBFC. He released runners brilliantly, and was one of the better performers for KBFC today.

Sahal Abdul Samad - 6

Sahal’s associative play was once again visible during the game. Created a handful of opportunities but to no avail. Got subbed- out in the 70th minute. Had one shot on target today.

Dimitrios Diamantakos - 5

Dimitrios was often left isolated in the box as Mumbai City marked him tightly. He was easily disposed of on multiple occasions. The forward is having a tough time overall.

Substitutes

Ruivah Hormipam - 6

Hormipam came on to replace Sahal as Vukamanovic tried to go for a more defensive approach. He had an average game overall.

Ivan Kalyuzhnyi - 6

Ivan replaced Mongil in the 70th minute and had an average game. His arrival couldn't turn the tide of the match. Had 24 touches in the game.

Saurav Mandal - N/A

Came in as a substitute in the extra time.

Bryce Miranda - N/A

Came in as a substitute in the extra time.