Indian Player Ratings: Sahal Abdul Samad sparkles for Kerala, Jeje Lalpekhlua puts in a toothless display
With that loss, John Gregory’s side continues to languish at the bottom of the table with just eight points in total.
On a quiet night at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Kochi, hosts Kerala Blasters brushed past a hapless Chennaiyin FC to move up to the 8th place in the Indian Super League (ISL) table. Matej Poplatnik scored twice while Sahal Abdul Samad added another to hand the Blasters an easy 3-0 win against the Marina Machans.
.@KeralaBlasters turned on the style at home to put the holders @ChennaiyinFC to the sword.More videos: https://t.co/8jtqJIjojH #HeroISL #ISLRecap #LetsFootball #FanBannaPadega #KERCHE pic.twitter.com/AntsYzqMco
— Indian Super League (@IndSuperLeague) February 15, 2019
Watch: Kerala 3-0 Chennaiyin, Goals and Highlights
Here are the ratings of the Indian players from the fixture:
Kerala Blasters
Dheeraj Singh - 7.5
Saves, saves and more SAVES ????If anyone deserves a clean sheet tonight, it's @dhee_singh01! #HeroISL #ISLMoments #LetsFootball #KERCHE #FanBannaPadega pic.twitter.com/xIaJJFtN4Z
— Indian Super League (@IndSuperLeague) February 15, 2019
The teenager showed brilliant quality under the bar and will definitely make a case for the senior national team in the upcoming years
It was an amazing performance by young Dheeraj on the night as he saved all three shots that he faced on goal. Amongst them was a brilliant last-gasp save that he made which ensured him a clean sheet. The teenager showed brilliant quality under the bar and will definitely make a case for the senior national team in the upcoming years.
Pritam Singh - 6.5
The full-back was in good shape against Chennaiyin and wasn’t troubled much in defence. He performed six tackles overall and also a couple of clearances. Needs to involve more in the game though.
Mohamad Rakip - 6.5
Rakip made a good contribution to the Kerala defence as he performed five tackles, five clearances and four interceptions. The full-back managed to keep Gregory Nelson away from the box for almost entirety of the game.
Sandesh Jhingan - 7.0
The skipper showed his class against the Machans as he took command of the defence. Performing six clearances and a couple of crucial tackles, Jhingan earned his clean sheet with hard work. Yet, the centre back wasn’t troubled much and even got a few chances in the attack.
Sahal Abdul Samad - 8.5
Sahal has been in a great form this season and he certainly showed his outstanding potential on the night. The 21-year-old showed good creativity since the start of the game and also made several intelligent runs between the opposition defenders. He even got his reward in the form of a goal, when a deflected ball landed straight into his feet as he converted beautifully without pressure to put a cherry on top for the Blasters in the 71st minute.
Seiminlen Doungel - 6.5
Len wasn’t as impressive in the attack as he usually is but certainly made some impact in the first half. The winger took a total of three shots out of which two were slightly off target while the other one was blocked. He also came close to scoring in the 27th minute but a bad touch inside the box was cleared away by the defenders.
Anas Edathodika- 6.5
Like the other defenders, Anas too had no real pressure in the game and was solid for the entire game. He also kept a good 88% passing accuracy and while defending he performed eight clearances overall. Pretty much that was the summary of his game.
Substitutes
Prasanth K- NA
Came in late in the 81st minute to replace Doungel but had very less to do as Kerala had already won the game by then.
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Chennaiyin FC
Karanjit Singh – 6.0
Courage Pekuson on the verge of scoring another 'Fans' Goal of the Week' nominee there!Watch it LIVE on @hotstartweets: https://t.co/nTp0mDKGVcJioTV users can watch it LIVE on the app. #HeroISL #ISLMoments #LetsFootball #KERCHE #FanBannaPadega pic.twitter.com/Y79U4tzUYE
— Indian Super League (@IndSuperLeague) February 15, 2019
It was due to the custodian's erroneous save that his side conceded the first goal through Poplatnik’s header
Although Karanjit made a couple of fine saves, he wasn’t in his best form against the Blasters. In fact, it was due to his erroneous save that his side conceded the first goal through Poplatnik’s header. The 33-year-old went on to concede two more goals in the second half as he stood behind a hapless defence led by Mailson Alves.
Laldinliana Renthlei – 5.5
Dinliana wasn’t much solid in the defence although he performed a couple of interceptions, blocks and three clearances. The full-back must improve for once in the upcoming games to at least end the season on a high since Chennaiyin continue to languish at the bottom of the table.
Tondonba Singh - 5.5
Like Dinliana, Tondonba too wasn’t much involved in the game but he did perform four tackles and an equal number of clearances. The full-back needs to improve on his passing as he wasted possession on too many occasions.
Francisco Fernandes – 5.0
The midfielder was absent for the majority of the game as he managed to get only 35 touches of the ball. Although his passing was somewhat good with a 72% accuracy, he lasted only 62 minutes on the pitch.
CK Vineeth – 5.5
The forward failed to shine against his parent club as all three of his shots were off target. Vineeth missed a great opportunity to score in the 26th minute when his shot skyrocketed.
Jeje Lalpekhlua – 5.5
.@dhee_singh01 denies the Mizo Sniper @jejefanai from close quarters!Watch it LIVE on @hotstartweets: https://t.co/nTp0mDKGVcJioTV users can watch it LIVE on the app. #HeroISL #ISLMoments #LetsFootball #KERCHE #FanBannaPadega pic.twitter.com/uoIQgl7sPC
— Indian Super League (@IndSuperLeague) February 15, 2019
The Mizo Sniper was part of a toothless Chennaiyin attack
Jeje played a very disappointing game against Kerala as he was entirely pocketed by the opposition defence. Managed to get only 26 touches of the ball, the Mizo Sniper was part of a toothless Chennaiyin attack.
Substitutions
Anirudh Thapa – 6.0
Came in the 56th minute to replace Christopher Herd and immediately made an impact as he lightened the Chennaiyin midfield with his pace and accurate ball distribution. Thapa deserves to be in the starting lineup and he certainly made a case for the same.
Thoi Singh – 5.5
Came in to replace Francisco in the 62nd minute but didn’t leave much of an impression in the midfield. He maintained a 69% passing accuracy, probably the only positive from his 33 minute cameo.
[KH_RELATED_NEWS title="Related News"][/KH_RELATED_NEWS]Replaced the injured Nelson in the 77th minute but couldn’t make any impact on the game as his side had already given up on winning or even equalising at that stage.
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