Sahal has a great future ahead, notes Ivan Vukomanovic
(Courtesy : ISL Media)
The tactician also lauded his team for their ongoing unbeaten run.
Kerala Blasters held Jamshedpur FC for a draw in the Indian Super League fixture. Kerala went behind in the game in the first half, courtesy of a goal from Greg Stewart through a free-kick. Sahal Abdul Samad continued his good scoring form for the Kochi-based club, as he equalized for them shortly after Stewart's ice-breaker. Kerala head coach Ivan Vukomanovic met the media to discuss his team's performance in the game:
Thoughts on game
The Blasters played Jamshedpur twice in the pre-season. Those two games had given the coach the idea of how the Men of Steel could play against his team. Jamshedpur play as a physical team and the Blasters had their task cut out because of the exhaustive week they had.
Kerala played three teams in the space of seven days. They played against Mumbai City and Chennaiyin FC before locking horns with the Blasters. Playing such a physical side during an exhaustive schedule means Ivan Vukomanovic sees this point as a positive outcome. For him, being undefeated in the last seven games is an achievement that makes him proud.
He opined, "Today's result is just the end of an exhaustive week. We were looking at today's game as a kind of effort that we have to go through. We knew it will be exhausting. We knew it will be a tough and physical contest against this Jamshedpur because of the way they play. We played them twice in the pre-season.
"We are happy with the positive attitude and outcome. Because it is now for us seven games in a row without a defeat. For the club, it is a huge achievement and we all have to be happy. I'm happy for the fans because they enjoy our work, our playing style. They enjoy seeing our boys together all the time - attacking together, defending together," the Ivan Vukomanovic added.
Reason for subbing Adrian Luna
Adrian Luna has had an impressive run of performances in a tough week. The midfielder was key in containing Greg Stewart and his fellow Jamshedpur forwards. However, he was subbed off early in the second half. Ivan Vukomanovic revealed that the Uruguayan midfielder felt some discomfort and the manager did not want to take any risk with his key player's fitness.
"Seeing that Adrian Luna was playing the last three games with high intensity, he felt some kind of issues in the second half. We didn't want to make it worse. We didn't want to take a risk and so we took him off. Hopefully, for the next game, nothing is bad," he explained.
Praise for Sahal Abdul Samad
Sahal continued his scoring run as he now has three goals from the last three games. The Indian midfielder is the highest-scoring Indian in the current season. Vukomanovic believes his form is the result of the hard work that the coaching staff has put in with the players to better their off the ball positioning. He emphasizes being at the right spot at the right moment.
"Sahal is one of the players who can make a difference. He's one of the Indian players who have the potential to improve even more. Since we started, I think he's doing a great job. He's implementing the things we want to add to his game.
"In football, you've to be at the right spot at the right time. So, we are trying to work on those things, not only with Sahal but with all the other players. He's a player who can attack from the right side, from the left side and from the centre. He has the potential to do it and I firmly believe he can improve even more. I think he has a great future with Kerala and the Indian National team," Ivan Vukomanovic revealed.
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