Kerala Blasters crush Chennaiyin, but a fight between teammates spoils party mood
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Kerala Blasters ran away with a 3-1 win in the ISL against Chennaiyin in Chennai on Thursday. Former Blasters player Vincy Barretto denied the visitors a clean sheet with a brilliant dummy before applying a calm finish in the first minute of added time after 90.
However, there was some drama in the end when star player Noah Sadaoui, who came on as a substitute, got into a fight with his teammate Adrian Luna. The two were separated by teammates, but it left a blemish on a hard-earned win for the Blasters.
Jesus Jimenez gave the Blasters a shock lead in the 3rd minute before Chennaiyin striker Wilmar Jordan was sent off for a silly foul on Milos Drincic.
The Blasters made the most use of the extra player in their corner by going on the attack and were rewarded in the third minute of five-added time with Korou Singh scoring. The teenager fired it past Nawaz, beating the home goalkeeper in the same corner Jimenez had opted for.
At 18, Korou is the youngest goalscorer for the Blasters in the ISL. He beat the record held by Deependra Negi, who was 19 when he scored for the Blasters in 2018.
The Blasters were determined to add to the tally to reduce the goal difference; they started the evening with a deficit of two. Kwame Peprah turned the negative goal difference into positive with a third goal on the night. The Ghanaian scuffed a shot at the near post after being found by Adrian Luna, but the connection was enough to beat Nawaz a third time.
The Blasters goalkeeper Sachin Suresh has produced a few smart saves on the night. He dived low to his right to deny Ryan Edwards early on. Not only did Sachin have his angle covered, but he did not spill it like he has done a few times this season, leading to heavy criticism. Sachin also managed to palm away a deep cross to the relief of the visiting fans.
In the dying moments of the match, Chennaiyin goalkeeper produced a stunning save to deny substitute Vibin Mohanan. Nawaz kept out a curler from Vibin at full stretch to the disbelief of the Blasters midfielder, who seemed ready to turn and celebrate his goal.
The Blasters needed the win to keep their playoff chances alive. T G Purushothaman's Blasters remain eighth in the points table on 24 points and have gone level on points with Odisha. The Blasters must sneak into the top six to be in the playoffs and have five more matches after tonight to achieve it.