Ratings: Noah Sadaoui leads FC Goa charge against Kerala Blasters

The Gaurs returned the favour to the Tuskers with the same scoreline.

FC Goa overcame Kerala Blasters 3-1 in the ISL 2022-23 at the Fatorda Stadium on Sunday. The Gaurs were not going to showcase complacency as their manager had mentioned in the pre-match conference. Carlos Pena's side started off the match in style as Brandon Fernandes went down and the referee granted what looked to be a controversial spot-kick. Iker Guarrotxena kept his scoring streak going with another successful penalty and granted FC Goa the lead. Noah Sadaoui re-ignited his season with another beautiful goal as he slalomed past the Blasters' defender at the brink of half-time and finished clinically.

The Tuskers seemed to be back in the game after half-time with Dimitrios Diamantakos ghosting into space behind Anwar Ali. The Greek striker's header from Adrian Luna's free-kick gave Ivan Vukomanovic's side some hope but it was momentary. Redeem Tlang's introduction brought on instant pressure and Kerala Blasters centre-back Hormipam Ruivah fell prey to the same. The winger finished off a swift counter efficiently as he received Brandon Fernandes' ball and shot past the keeper into the far corner. Later the game saw a host of injuries and needless yellow cards but it was the Gaurs who had the last laugh.

Let us now take a look at Khel Now's player ratings for the game:

FC Goa (By Riddhiman Sarkar)

Dheeraj Singh - 6.5

Made a save and did not see any more action apart from two high claims in 100 minutes of action. 

Aiban Dohling - 6

Blanked on the attack but made a few defensive contributions, winning four out of seven ground duels. 

Fares Arnaout - 6.5

Did not give Diamantakos an inch of breathing space as he tracked and marked him deep into his own half. Also won an impressive 75% of his ground duels while committing only one foul.

Anwar Ali - 6

Left Diamantakos completely free to thump in a header from Luna’s free-kick.

Sanson Pereira - 6.5

Did some brilliant defending as his finest contribution came in the form of a goal-line clearance after committing his body. Subbed off for Saviour Gama in the 81st minute after two interceptions to his name.

Ayush Chhetri - 6.5

Switched on the style with the classic headband look as he carried on even after an injury and completed 83% of his passes. Subbed off for Glan Martins in the 59th minute.  

Edu Bedia - 6.5

The roving Spanish regista played in a variety of areas to grant his side a palette of options for the pressing zones. Covered a massive 9.4 kilometres and completed 79% of his passes.

Devendra Murgaonkar - 5

Mostly a miss from the wide midfielder as his only highlight was the tussle with Luna for purposely delaying his substitution. Went off for Redeem Tlang in the 59th minute having amassed a total of 28 touches on the ball. 

Brandon Fernandes - 6

Quite intelligently earned a penalty for his side. Went into the book for a childish tug and capped off his evening with an assist for Redeem. Replaced by Brison Fernandes in the 81st minute.

Noah Sadaoui - 7.5

Brought a locker full of skills to the game and executed them efficiently, winning three out of five take-ons. Oh! He also scored a brilliant goal after gliding past a Kerala Blasters defender! 

Iker Guarrotxena - 7

Converted his second successive spot-kick of the season to make it two games in a row with a goal. Gave way to Alvaro Vazquez in the 70th minute after completing 72% of his passes.

Substitutes

Glan Martins - 6.5

Swashbuckling display from the defensive midfielder as he marked his entry into the game with a sliding challenge on Luna. Finished the game with two tackles and one vital interception.

Redeem Tlang - 7

Injected some much needed pace and energy into the game as well as a presence down the wings. Collected Brandon’s ball after Hormipam's mis-pass and finished into the bottom corner emphatically.  

Saviour Gama - 6

Covered for Sanson after coming on, with one blocked shot and a tackle.

Alvaro Vazquez - 6.5

Although the Spaniard still had no end product, he did get one key pass in only nine touches.

Brison Fernandes - N/A

Kerala Blasters (by Uttiyo Sarkar)

Prabhsukhan Gill – 5.0

Gill created some of his own troubles with questionable positioning. Unable to save either of the goals and only made one save from five goalbound shots.

Sandeep Singh – 4.5

Singh was really troubled by the menacing Noah and made a poor error leading to FC Goa's second, with an unnecessary back-pass allowing the FC Goa man to score. Tried his best with forward runs, but his crosses were frustrating too!

Hormipam Ruivah – 7.0

Probably the best Kerala Blasters defender despite conceding three goals. Ruivah was extremely proactive, making key challenges all through the game. He made four clearances, three blocks and two interceptions – with his only error being in overcommitting for Noah’s goal.

Victor Mongil – 4.5

Mongil’s passing was crisp, but he lacked the commanding nature of Marko Leskovic. Troubled by Goa’s pace and caught horribly out of position before the third goal.

Nishu Kumar – 5.5

Nishu lacked the attacking threat of Jessel Carneiro on the left, failing to create much from there. Caught out of position a few times, especially for the third goal.

Jeakson Singh – 5.0

Jeakson worked really hard to deal with Goa’s quick-passing style, but was a bit too aggressive at times. Put in some good defensive work, but was unable to help dominate the hosts.

Ivan Kaliuzhnyi – 6.5

Ivan was really proactive all game long and put in work on both sides of the pitch. His distribution was impressive, as he helped create stuff and also went close to scoring. Made two tackles and interceptions each, and managed an impressive 88% passing accuracy.

Saurav Mandal – 6.5

Mandal was very unlucky to give away a penalty, a decision which seemed controversial. Exciting going forward, putting in some inviting crosses and creating three big chances - a brief summary of the youngster's game.

Sahal Abdul Samad – 5.0

Sahal failed to add a creative spark to his attack, being neutralized by some tight-marking. Added very little scoring threat too.

Adrian Luna – 7.5

Luna tried his best to salvage a result, but was let down by his teammates. Created some big chances with excellent deliveries, especially a brilliant cross for Kerala Blasters' sole goal. Unlucky to be on the losing side.

Dimitrios Diamantakos – 7.0

After a quiet first half, Diamantakos rose highest to score an impressive header. Quite proactive in the box and tested Dheeraj quite a few times.

Substitutes

Nihal Sudeesh – 6.5

Was denied of his debut goal late on, seeing his goalbound shot spectacularly saved off the line. Looked menacing in his substitute outing.

Bryce Miranda – 6.0

Added a lot more attacking threat on the left, sending in some great crosses to trouble the hosts.

Jessel Carneiro – 5.5

Was unable to create much in his cameo.

Apostolos Giannou – N/A

Ayush Adhikari - N/A