Ratings: Sachin Suresh masterclass helps Kerala Blasters conquer East Bengal

Kerala Blasters goalie Sachin Suresh saved two consecutive penalties in this ISL tie!

East Bengal suffered their third straight loss in the Indian Super League (ISL) with a 2-1 defeat at the hands of Kerala Blasters on Saturday, November 4 at the Salt Lake Stadium, Kolkata. The Tuskers took the lead with a clinical finish from Daisuke Sakai in the 32nd minute and excelled in the first half.

East Bengal had a huge chance to equalize in the 83rd minute, but Cleiton Silva botched two penalty attempts. Dimitrios Diamantakos produced an impressive finish in the 88th minute to seal the win for his side, even though Cleiton scored a penalty in the 99th minute.

Here are the Player Ratings for the game.

East Bengal Player Ratings (by Uttiyo Sarkar)

Prabhsukhan Gill – 6.0

Outwitted for Daisuke and Diamantakos’ goal, but made a great diving save to deny another goal in the second half.

Mohammad Rakip – 5.0

Rakip had an energetic start, but was outwitted by Daisuke. Lost mark of him and turned inside out for the opener.

Lalchungnunga – 6.0

Lalchungnunga was pretty sturdy at the back, making five clearances and winning two duels to keep Peprah quiet. A bit aggressive at times, but that didn’t cost him.

Jose Pardo – 6.5

Pardo maintained a pretty solid backline and was proactive at the back and in midfield, making two tackles and winning five duels.

Mandar Rao Dessai – 5.5

Mandar had little influence over creating chances and was unable to restrict the visitors’ attacks through his side. Taken off at the break!

Harmanjot Singh Khabra – 5.0

Khabra couldn’t do much to stop Kerala Blasters’ flow through midfield and put one attempt wide. Taken off at half-time.

Saul Crespo – 5.0

The Spaniard lacked creativity, was unable to create any chances and gave the ball away cheaply many times. Won a few duels but couldn’t inspire much going forward.

Nandhakumar Sekar – 6.5

Nandha troubled with his movement and played in some nice passes from the right. It was his blistering shot that forced the error leading to East Bengal’s penalty.

Naorem Mahesh Singh – 7.0

Mahesh was restricted in the first half, but was more energetic after the break. Created some nice chances with his accurate crosses and won a penalty.

Cleiton Silva – 4.0

Cleiton had a nightmare at the Salt Lake Stadium. Couldn’t create much all game long and then missed not one, but two penalty attempts before even skying the rebound from the second. Somewhat made up by scoring a penalty from his third attempt in the last kick of the game, but that was mere consolation.

Javier Siverio – 4.5

Siverio had another quiet outing in which things didn’t click in the final third. Headed a big chance wide of the post and was unable to really link up anything magical.

Substitutes

Nishu Kumar – 5.0

Unable to really add much creative threat and made a poor error by heading the ball to Diamantakos’ path, leading to Kerala Blasters’ second goal.

Hijazi Maher – 6.0

Looked bright with his defensive work and forced a great save with a nice header.

Souvik Chakrabarti – 5.5

Couldn’t really add any attacking threat and was unable to stop Kerala’s attacks either.

VP Suhair – 5.0

Got a bit rattled by the Kerala players and couldn’t impose any major threat.

Borja Herrera – N/A

Failed to do much in a late cameo.

Kerala Blasters (By Keshava Verma)

Sachin Suresh – 8.5

Made a few crucial saves here and there, and wasn’t sloggish with his distribution. Made two penalty saves late into the game, to save the day for his side.

Sandeep Singh -7

Did well and kept the wingers at bay. Made some great attacking runs, and had a much improved performance.

Pritam Kotal – 7

Was solid in the back, and kept the defence compact. Was an incredible aerial presence, and made life difficult for East Bengal. Conceded a pretty cheap penalty late into the game, and sacrificed the team’s cleansheet.

Ruivah Hormipam – 7

Did well in the back, and kept his cool whilst marking the forwards. Made some crucial blocks as well.

Naocha Singh – 6.5

Had a tough night at the back. Was constantly being charged by Mahesh, who used the wing to play plenty of crosses.

Daisuke Sakai – 8

Scored the opener with a brilliant finish off the back of a brilliant Adrian Luna assist. Was also quite efficient with the ball in the wings.

Vibin Mohanan – 7

Was decent with his movement and passing, and delivered a few decent balls onto the path of the attackers.

Danish Farooq – 6

Had an utterly disappointing game, and couldn’t do any good to Kerala in the middle of the park. Was subbed off in the second half.

Adrian Luna – 8

Was the difference maker for Kerala Blasters yet again. Threaded a beautiful pass into Daisuke’s path for the opener, and was overall very impressive.

Kwame Peprah – 6.5

Wasn’t very involved for the majority of the game, and couldn’t make a real impact in the game whatsoever.

Dimitris Diamantakos – 8

Had a decent game, and despite not having created a lot of goal-scoring opportunities, Diamantakos was very involved in the game, and worked hard for his side. Scored the second goal for his side, to seal the victory. Was shown a second yellow for his goal celebration.

Substitutes

Mohammad Azhar – 6.5

Came in place of Danish, and did well to adapt to the game and stood solid in the midfield.

Rahul KP – N/A

For more updates, follow Khel Now on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Youtube; download the Khel Now Android App or IOS App and join our community on Whatsapp & Telegram.