Ratings: Luna, Daisuke power Kerala Blasters to victory in ISL opener

Curtis Main scored the lone goal for Bengaluru FC

The first game of the season frequently establishes the tone for the remainder of the season and gives fans an idea of what to anticipate from the competing clubs.

Six months after their controversial walkout in the playoffs, Kerala Blasters won against their rivals Bengaluru FC in the Indian Super League season opening match at the Nehru Stadium in Kochi.

An unfortunate own goal from Veendorp and a major error from Gurpreet led to the downfall of the Blues in Today's match. Curtis Main's goal was a tremendous attempt to get Bengaluru back in the match, but it wasn't enough to win.

Kerala Blasters on the other side displayed immense determination to maintain their lead and finally sheer brilliance from their skipper Adrian Luna helped them to attain their first victory of their season.

Here are the player ratings for the game

Kerala Blasters FC (by Sonal Fernandes)

Sachin Suresh : 7

Reliable on his debut. Had to make a few important saves in the first half and did them well.

Aiban Dohling : 6

Efficient in possession and well disciplined out of possession.

Milos Drincic : 8

An impressive debut for the tall Montenegrin defender. Always chose the right option in possession and provided a threat in the opposition box on set pieces. 

Pritam Kotal : 7

Defended well throughout the match but one instance of lackluster defending gave Bengaluru the opportunity to score and make the final moments of the match nervy for the hosts. 

Prabir Das : 7

Good defensively and provided himself as an option constantly going forward and even putting in some dangerous crosses.

Mohammed Aimen : 7

Provided his side with an energy-filled 80 minutes of width and pace on the left flank for Kerala Blasters. 

Jeakson Singh : 7

Always an option to pass for defenders and the goalkeeper. Efficient with the ball the ball at his feet.

Danish Farooq Bhat : 7

Tough in midfield. Provided his defence with good cover in front of it. His competitive performance saw him win 6 out of his 10 duels 

Daisuke Sakai : 8

The Japanese started brightly providing constant problems to former Kerala captain Jessel. Had a 100% dribble success rate.

Adrian Luna : 9

Led his side by example, provided good link-up play and his prowess on set pieces finally paid off as it led to the opening goal. Then pounced on a rare Gurpreet Singh mistake to help his side to a 2-0 lead. 

Kwame Peprah: 7

Kept the Bengaluru defenders on their toes. Won the corner from which Kerala scored their opening goal.

Substitutes:

Freddy Lallawmawma: 6

Few good touches after he came on.

Vibin Mohanan N/A

Nihal Sudheesh N/A

Bengaluru FC (By: Analoy Majumder)

Gurpreet Singh Sandhu: 5.5

Even with good defensive support from Jovanovic and Damjanovic in front of him, Gurpreet was far from his best today. Gurpreet had little involvement in the first goal he conceded, but he then made a disgusting error by losing possession of the ball, which Luna capitalised to score the game's second goal.

Roshan Naorem Singh: 7.5

Roshan Naorem Singh performed his job well today, he was active in the wing and helped his team both offensively and defensively. Made some good positive runs with the ball in times of counter attack. Seemed confident in the defending part pairing alongside Jovanovic, Damjanovic and Jessel. Roshan also delivered some lethal crosses from corners and set-pieces but the BFC strikers left to convert.

Aleksandar Jovanovic: 7.0

Aleksandar Jovanovic did absolutely great today in the backline. Made a number of good interceptions and did not allow much space to Kerala Blasters players to penetrate the final third.

Slavko Damjanovic: 7.0

Damjanovic exactly started from where he left-off last season. Slavko was consistently good throughout the game. Delivered good command defensively in the pitch playing alongside Jessel and Jovanovic.

Jessel Carneiro: 6.5

Jessel Carneiro had a lot to prove today as he was playing against his former team and did quite well in the sides but conceded a yellow card in the second quarter of the game. Jessel went into overlapping through the wing and also participated in the attacks constructed by BFC.

Bhutia: 6.5

Bhutia's with-the ball movement in today’s match was quite impressive. Tried to deliver a few defence splitting passes but KBFC’s strong defence did not let those chances find the back of the net. Bhutia also made few positive runs in the midfield giving hopes of getting better with matches.

Rohit Danu: 6.5

Rohit Danu did well in the midfield and delivered good command playing alongside Veendorp and Suresh. Delivered a few key passes throughout the game but couldn’t find the back of the net.

Suresh Wangjam Singh: 6.5

Suresh in today’s game created a strong combination with the other two members of the three-man backline, and he also did well in creating chances in the final third of KBFC. Even though he dropped a few balls, he was successful in captivating the midfield.

Keziah Veendorp: 5.5

Keziah played quite well in the first half but was not too apparent on the pitch. The number 6 in the second half headed a ball into his own net from a corner putting Kerala Blasters ahead in the match.As he failed to leave any positive impact on the pitch, he was substituted in the 64th minute and Javi Hernandez came in place of him.

Williams: 6.0

Williams today failed to deliver much command on the pitch and also left to deliver any positive impact. Snatched a few balls in the midfield but couldn’t convert anything positive from it. As it is the season's first game so we can anticipate what he has to offer in the upcoming matches.

Sivashakti: 7.0

Sivashakti was very positive today in the attacking third. Tried to penetrate KBFC’s defence a lot of times but left to convert. Paired well with Curtis Main in the last quarter and created quite a few goal scoring opportunities for the Blues.

Substitutes

Javi Hernandez: 7.0

Javi came in place of Veendorp in the second half and created a number of positive attacking chances. Delivered lethal balls from set-pieces but BFC strikers did not find the back of the net. Surely would have made a more positive impact if brought earlier by Simon Grayson.

Curtis Main: 7.0

Simon Grayson brought Curtis Main in the search of goal, and he somewhat did his job and pulled on back for BFC just before the stoppage time.

Parag: 6.5

Parag replaced Bhutia in the second half but had no noticeable impact. Did well in the midfield and attempted a combination play with Sivashatki and Curtis Main by engaging in BFC's attacking chances. If brought earlier, he would have been far more valuable.

Harsh: 6.0

Harsh came in the second half  but did not create any positive engagement with other teammates. Did well with the ball but needs to put out more focus on training.