Ratings: Dimitri Diamantakos stars as Kerala Blasters snap long winless streak

The win ended Blasters' 10-match winless run against the Gaurs.

Kerala Blasters ended their 10-match-long winless streak against FC Goa, with a 3-1 win at Kochi, their first over Goa since 2016. Ivan Vukamanovic made just one change to the starting XI with Sahal returning to the side after making a substitute appearance against NorthEast United. FC Goa went with an all-Indian backline and loaded their attack with three foreigners.

After end-to-end action for the first 40 minutes, Adrian Luna put Kerala Blasters in-front with a simple tap-in after a melee inside the Goa penalty box. Three minutes later Dimitrios Diamantakos doubled the lead from the spot.

The goal of the night, however, came from Ivan Kalyuzhnyi who took his range to a different level with a scorcher at the start of the second half. FC Goa pulled one back through Noah Sadaoui in the 67th minute, but that was a mere consolation.

Here are the player ratings from both teams:

Kerala Blasters (by Sooraj Saji)

Prabhsukhan Gill - 8

Even after missing the clean-sheet, the custodian displayed top performance today. His quick reflexes and decision-making proved crucial for the Blasters. He made two crucial saves in the match.

Sandeep Singh - 7.5

Sandeep continued from what he stopped in the previous match. He performed well in the wing-back position apart from some minor mistakes he made. He made nine recoveries and four clearances. Got substituted in the 82nd minute.

Marko Leskovic - 8

A dominating presence in the defence line. If it was not for Marko, the scoreline could have been different. Made some four crucial clearances which includes a goal-line save.

Hormipam Ruivah - 6.5

The young defender had an above-average performance today. Defended well and marked tight but could have done better against Noah Sadaoui goal.

Nishu Kumar - 6.5

Nishu did a great job offensively but was a bit shaky in the defence line. Opposition forwards surpassed him multiple times in the game.

Rahul KP - 7.5

Dazzled the opposition with his spicy moves. Rahul created two good chances in the game. The Malayali winger had 44 touches in the game.

Ivan Kalyuzhnyi - 8.5

The Ukrainian showed his class again with a spectacular goal from outside the box. The midfielder steered the center of the pitch well. He maintained an 87% passing accuracy throughout the game.

Jeakson Singh - 6.5

Jeakson displayed an average performance in the midfield today. He couldn't establish a dominating control in the midfield. Jeakson made two interceptions in the game and made a recovery. Got substituted in the 70th minute.

Sahal Abdul Samad - 8

A dream night for Sahal in Kochi. The Kerala player displayed a top-notch performance today. Created numerous creative chances which included a brilliant assist for Adrian Luna. He has three shots today.

Adrian Luna - 8

The Kerala Blasters captain displayed a calm and composed performance throughout the match. Scored a tap-in to open the scoresheet for Blasters. He had 49 touches in the game and made two key passes in the game.

Dimitrios Diamantakos - 8.5

A spectacular night for the Greek forward. Scored a goal and assisted one for his team. He pressed tightly causing a severe headache for the Gaurs. He was substituted in the 71st minute.

Substitutes

Puitea - 6.5

Performed well in the pivot role. Made three interceptions in the game. Helped his side from conceding any further goals.

Apostolos Giannou - 6.5

Made an average performance as a substitute today. Played a total of 19 minutes and made 11 touches on the ball.

Jessel Carneiro - 6

Coming in as a substitute, the defender marked his 50th ISL appearance for Kerala Blasters today. Played eight minutes and had just three touches on the ball.

Saurav Mandal - 6

Missed the chance to score an open goal today. Had a shot off-target and played a total of 13 minutes.

Victor Mongil - N/A

Came on in the final minute and had little impact.

FC Goa (By Riddhiman Sarkar)

Dheeraj Singh - 6.5

Could only do so much as he made only one save and punched the ball out on one occasion. His defence faltered in front of him and made it tougher for him to cover ground.

Seriton Fernandes - 7.5

Crossing the 100th game mark was not the most joyous of occasions for the right-back as he had a tough day at the office. Despite being the Gaurs’ best player with an assist for their only goal and two completed ground tackles, Seriton could not help his team to even a point.

Aiban Dohling - 6

Had a better showing than his partner in Pena’s preferred centre-half pairing but was nothing too impressive. Won his only aerial duel and one out of his two contested ground duels. 

Anwar Ali - 5.5

Went into the book for a rash tackle and was unusually poor at the heart of the FC Goa defence. Amassed 123 touches on the ball but was poor defensively as he did not win any of his five ground duels. Losing possession 18 times did not help the case of the only natural centre-back in the all-Indian backline.

Saviour Gama - N/A

Got only 21 minutes of action before he was taken off and replaced by Sanson Pereira. Was not very prominent while present as he attempted seven passes and completed only six of them.

Ayush Dev Chhetri - 6

Could not block the passing lanes as Kalyuzhnyi ran rings around him and he couldn’t combine with Bedia to play around Jeakson. Won both of his ground duels and four of his five long balls found their target but to no avail.

Edu Bedia- 6.5

One of the better players for Goa on a gloomy night in a tough atmosphere. Bedia managed to generate three key passes with only 75 touches on the ball. The deep-lying playmaker got forward and tried to make late runs into the box but both of his shots were off-target.

Noah Sadaoui- 7

The rapid winger once again bloomed to life under pressure but this time his contributions weren’t enough. Seriton’s ball found him and he scored past Gill to snatch away the clean-sheet but was otherwise kept quiet by the commandeering presence of Nishu Kumar and Leskovic since he failed to complete all three of his take-ons.  

Brandon Fernandes- 6

60 minutes of playing time saw the Goa captain generate a single key pass in what was yet another outing to forget. Swamped out by Sahal, Jeakson and Kalyuzhnyi, Brandon failed to be the penetrative hole player that Pena needed him to be. Was replaced by Redeem Tlang after only completing eight out of 10 passes.  

Iker Guarrotxena- 6.5

Tracked back well but could not find the perfect equation to crack through Vukomanovic’s energetic defence and midfield. As part of the foreign attack, Guarrotxena was surprisingly poor in executing his naturally direct style of football. Despite having the most shots among all his teammates, the Spaniard failed to find a way through as only one shot was on target and three were blocked.

Alvaro Vazquez- 6

Vazquez’s troubles continued as he got on the ball only 21 times. Isolated by the dominant Ruivah and Leskovic, the skillful striker only had one shot on target and another blocked.

Substitutes

Sanson Perreira - 6

Did well to replace Saviour Gama but was unable to provide the cutting edge as he rarely advanced forward. His only cross was wayward and he was absent in defence, losing one of his three ground duels and all of his aerial battles.

Brison Fernandes - 6

The youngster could not replicate his brilliant outing last time out as he only got on the ball five times in 13 minutes of action. 

Redeem Tlang- 6

Got 12 touches on the ball and lost possession four times as he was ineffective coming off the bench.