Ratings: Sipovic rises highest as Kerala Blasters edge SC East Bengal

The defender scored the only goal of the game in the first half.

Kerala Blasters edged past SC East Bengal 1-0 to keep their hopes of making it to the playoffs of the Indian Super League alive. The Kochi-based side have 26 points from 13 games and are placed third in the league table, eclipsing Bengaluru FC. SC East Bengal retain their second from bottom place, while Kerala Blasters are now three points behind table leaders Hyderabad FC. The Blasters' centre-back Enes Sipovic scored the only goal of the game from a Lalthathanga Khawlhring corner.

Here are the player ratings from the match:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wdGXWQ4OujM

Kerala Blasters (by Shivam Tiwari)

Prabhsukhan Singh Gill - 7.0

The Kerala Blasters goalkeeper was not called into action by the SC East Bengal forwards a lot. He saved the only shot he faced on target - a volley attempt from Antonio Perosevic.

Sandeep Singh - 5.5

Sandeep Singh wasn't impressive throughout the game. He struggled with his output. He put in two crosses, both of which failed to meet anyone in the box.

Bijoy V - 6.5

Bijoy had a decent outing partnering Sipovic against SC East Bengal. He was impressive with his passing and proactive in defending. He had four clearances and a passing accuracy of 75%.

Enes Sipovic - 8.0

Apart from scoring from a corner through a header, Sipovic was brilliant for Kerala Blasters at the back. He completed all his attempted interceptions and finished the game with five clearances.

Sanjeev Stalin - 7.0

Sanjeev moved up a lot to help the likes of Sahal in pressing. He also combined with Jorge Pereyra Diaz and Sahal on the left in attack. He finished the game with 79% passing accuracy.

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Sahal Abdul Samad - 7.0

Sahal was brilliant with his pressing, especially in the first 30 minutes of the game. He won back possession at least four times in the attacking third in the first half. He created a chance from the two crosses he put in.

Lalthathanga Khawlhring - 7.5

Lalthathanga Khawlhring was one of the better players for the Blasters. He created three chances and combined with the wingers. He also assisted Sipovic through his corner.

Jeakson Singh - 6.5

Jeakson Singh played in front of the defence as the holding midfielder. His most notable contribution to the game was a weak attempt through a header in the first half from Adrian Luna's cross. He created a chance and suffered two fouls.

Adrian Luna - 8.5

Adrian Luna didn't shy away from testing his luck from long distances. His crosses were precise and his runs disrupted the shape of SC East Bengal's backline. He created four chances and finished with eight crosses.

Alvaro Vazquez - 6.5

Vazquez got Kerala their first shot on goal when he crossed, with precision for Jeakson Singh's headed attempt. He had three shots as well.

Jorge Diaz - 6.0

Jorge Pereyra Diaz was again kept away from the box by the opposition backline. Isolated, he struggled to have any impact on the game. He finished with just one shot.

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Substitutes

Ayush Adhikari - 5.0

Ayush Adhikari failed to have any impact on the game after he replaced Jeakson Singh. He finished the game with 57% passing accuracy.

Chencho Gyeltshen - N/A

He had just seven touches in the game.

Vincy Barretto - N/A

He was substituted in at the 82nd minute.

SC East Bengal (by Rajdeep Saha):

Sankar Roy- 7.0

The goalkeeper performed quite well in his second consecutive start in the league. Roy couldn’t do much about the solitary goal scored, as that was due to poor defending. In total, he made four saves, which include three from inside the box.

Hira Mondal- 5.5

This was one of the rare disappointing performances from the consistent defender. Mondal lost the ball around 20 times and had only one accurate long ball out of seven attempts. On a better note, he made three clearances and two tackles.

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Joyner Lourenco- 6.5

The defender returned from a long-time injury and performed well on his comeback. Lourenco made four clearances and blocked a shot. 

Franjo Prce- 6.0

The Croatian made five clearances and one interception, but didn’t have much impact on the game.

Naocha Singh- 6.0

Defensively, he made five clearances, four tackles and won three out of four aerial duels.

Amarjit Singh Kiyam- 6.5

The midfielder combined well with Antonio Perosevic on the right flank, especially in the first half. Amarjit had an 82% passing accuracy and two successful dribbling attempts.

Fran Sota- 5.5

The Spaniard was barely involved in the game and was constantly out-muscled by the opponents.

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Lalrinliana Hnamte- 6.0

Hnamte had a decent outing with a 75% passing accuracy. He was good in the one-on-one situations, as he won three of his four ground duels.

Antonio Perosevic- 7.5

The forward made two key passes and had one shot on target. Moreover, he won all his aerial duels and five out of his seven ground battles.

Mohammed Rafique- 6.5

Captain for the night, Rafique was instrumental in putting pressure on the opponents. The skipper made two tackles, had two successful dribbles and lobbed two accurate long balls. 

Rahul Paswan- 5.5

The debutant had a couple of shining moments, but his first start in the ISL will be remembered for the glorious chance he missed. Paswan barely had 10 touches and made one key pass.

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Substitutes

Jackichand Singh- 5.5

Looked lively on the wings and had one interception, but couldn’t get too involved in the game.

Subha Ghosh- N/A

He came on just for the last few moments, so couldn’t make an impact.

Naorem Mahesh Singh- 5.5

Had a 75% passing accuracy but nothing more than that.

Wahengbam Angousana- 6.0

The midfielder completed most of his pass (94%) and looked threatening going forward.

Sourav Das- 6.5

In the mere 15 minutes, he made one key pass, completed three of five long balls and made a last-ditch tackle to keep the scoreline the same.

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