Ratings: Vazquez, Luna excel as Kerala Blasters beat Hyderabad FC

Vazquez scored his fourth goal of the season on Sunday.

Kerala Blasters brought Hyderabad FC's unbeaten run to an end and jumped to the top of the table with a 1-0 win in Indian Super League (ISL) 2021-22 at the Tilak Maidan Stadium on Sunday.

Alvaro Vazquez (42nd) scored a first half goal which eventually proved to be the winner as Kerala stretched their unbeaten streak to nine games, moving to the top of the points table with a better goal-difference than Mumbai City FC, both being on 17 points from 10 games. This was the first time they went top of the ISL table, for the first time since the last seven years.

Hyderabad, on the other hand, saw their eight-game unbeaten run come to an end, as they dropped to the third in the table, having 16 points from 10 matches.

Here are Khel Now's Player Ratings from the Kerala Blasters - Hyderabad FC clash.

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Kerala Blasters (by Hari Thoyakkat)

Prabhsukhan Gill- 7.5

Three saves and a clearance make the best of his numbers from the night. A big part of the KBFC defence that kept a clean-sheet.

Harmanjot Khabra- 6.5

Played for only 45 minutes and had to be substituted early because of his booking. A little reckless, but did his job in defence well when it mattered the most.

Ruivah Hormipam- 7.0

One of the finds of the ISL 2021-22 season. The Kerala Blasters youngster kept the Hyderabad FC attackers at bay and paired up with Marko Leskovic well.

Marko Leskovic- 8.0

Easily the best new defensive signing of the ISL 2021-22 season. What a revelation he has been. Seven clearances, one clock, two interceptions, one tackle for him on Sunday. Was never dribbled past throughout the match.

Jessel Carneiro- 7.5

Did well on the right flank - made some errors in distribution but made up for it with his defensive work. Had a goal-line clearance. His last-minute shoulder injury is a concern for the Yellow Army.

Jeakson Singh- 7.0

Wasn't at his usual best, but did his job well and partnered Puitea well.

Sahal Abdul Samad- 7.0

Another impressive shift. Went forward, got himself into scoring positions, tracked back to defend. Can find a way to stop losing the ball, however.

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Adrian Luna - 8.0

Running out of adjectives to describe how good the Uruguayan has been. Against Hyderabad FC, the Kerala Blasters man did a great job yet again, covered every blade of grass, setup his teammates, tried a few attempts himself and was even available to defend in his own team's penalty box.

Puitea- 7.5

A mature performance in the middle of the park. Completed 79% of his passes and won all five of the ground duels that he engaged in.

Jorge Pereyra Diaz- 7.0

Wasn't as good as he would have wanted himself to be. Couldn't capitalize on a couple of good chances, but did enough to create panic in the HFC defence.

Alvaro Vazquez- 8.0

Scored the only goal of the match, off a very tough chance. His sweetly-timed volley proved that he is one of the best finishers in the ISL this season.

Substitutes

Sandeep Singh- 6.5

Replaced Khabra well but not good enough for a spot in the starting XI, yet. Committed silly fouls and was caught out of position at least once.

Nishu Kumar- 7.0

Replaced Sahal in the 78th minute. Had just 12 touches on the ball, but made one clearance and a tackle each. Also completed four passes.

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Chencho Gyeltshen- N/A

Came on in the 88th minute, could not influence the proceedings.

Sanjeev Stalin- N/A

Came on in the final minute of injury-time. By then the match result was a foregone conclusion.

Hyderabad FC (by Kaushik G Viswanath)

Laxmikant Kattimani- 6.5

Made four saves on the night as he was tested occasionally by the Kerala Blasters frontline. But, couldn't keep out Alvaro Vazquez's pile-driver that gave Kerala the winner just before half-time.

Asish Rai- 6.5

He had the most touches by any Hyderabad player on the night. Created two chances and sent in seven crosses. Completed 57% of his passes and won three out of his four tackles. He also made two clearances and made three successful interceptions. Showed immense work-rate in attack and defence.

Chinglensana Singh- 5.5

Struggled against the Kerala Blasters frontline and was rather shaky in defence. Made only one clearance and one interception to cap off a rather tough night for him and the team. He was taken off in the 88th minute.

Juanan- 6.5

Put in another strong performance in defence. But, he was left unaware in the set-piece which led to Kerala's goal and eventual winner. Won his single attempted tackle, made four clearances and six interceptions.

Akash Mishra- 6.5

Showed a strong head on the left flank. Was tireless in his efforts for the Nizams like Asish. Attempted nine tackles and won four of them.

He also made two clearances and two interceptions respectively. He also committed the most fouls by any HFC player on the night (4).

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Joao Victor- 6.0

Cut a frustrated figure in midfield as he was often caught wrong-footed. Made a valiant effort in midfield driving his team forward and managing play. He won three of his four attempted tackles and made seven interceptions, the most by any player on the night.

Nikhil Poojary- 5.5

Was not at his best on the night, completing only 52% of his passes. Jessel Carneiro managed him well on Hyderabad's right flank. Created one chance, won one tackle and one interception respectively. He was taken off in the 72nd minute.

Edu Garcia- 6.5

The Spaniard came closest to scoring for the Nizams as his first half free-kick struck the crossbar. But, that was as good as it got from Garcia.

Tried his best to drive the team forward, but couldn't produce his usual best. Created two chances on the night and completed 69% of his passes.

Hitesh Sharma- 5.0

Did a decent job in midfield along with Joao Victor. Made two clearances and interceptions respectively. Didn't get a lot of action on the ball, but completed 84% of his 19 attempted passes. Perhaps lacked a bit of a clinical edge, while defending. The midfielder was taken off at half-time.

Aniket Jadhav- 7.0

He was one of the best players for Hyderabad FC on the night. Aniket was fouled four times, as he troubled Khabra and later Sandeep with his pace and movement. Finished 69% of his passes and one of his two shots was on target. He was taken off in the 72nd minute for Rohit Danu.

Bartholomew Ogbeche- 5.5

The leading goalscorer couldn't find his shooting boots against his former team. Came close on a few occasions, but couldn't really test Gill. Only one of his four attempted shots was on target. Kerala's defence really did well to keep him in check.

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Substitutes:

Sahil Tavora- 5.5

He was brought on at half-time and was often at the cross-hairs of the Blasters. Committed three fouls and also got booked early on. He completed 88% of his passes and won one of his four attempted tackles.

Rohit Danu- 6.5

Looked a bright prospect after coming in in the 72nd minute. But, he lacked that final touch and telling pass. Nonetheless, caused lots of problems with his dribbling and movement. Completed seven of his eight attempted passes.

Mohamed Yasir- 6.0

Came on in the 72nd minute and couldn't influence his side's gameplay a lot. Finished 44% of his nine attempted passes and made one clearance.

Javier Siverio- 6.0

Came on in the 73rd minute and got booked very early on after coming in. Got his only shot on target, a goal which was later chalked off for offside. Was rather left frustrated with a lack of service on the night.

Seityasen Singh- N/A

Came on in the 88th minute and didn't have a lot of substantial contribution. Made one clearance and completed only one of his six attempted passes.

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