XtraTime Web Desk – A very important victory at a very crucial stage for Kerala. More importantly, this win will give Kibu Vicuna some relief, who’s job was on the line.
The match started slow but both the teams looked to control the game after few initial minutes. Aniket Jadhav’s low shot hit the post in the early minutes of the game. Kerala then seemed to control the pace of the match. Jordan Murray got a great chance to score but he failed to keep the shot on target from a 1v1 position. Minutes later Kerala got another chance but this time Hooper missed a golden opportunity. However Kerala finally got their goal as Costa Nhamoinesu gave them a lead from a brilliant header in the 22nd minute.
Valskis brought Jamshedpur level in the 36th minute after few good chances created by Jamshedpur. Albino Gomes’ brilliance kept them in the driving seat but couldn’t stop Valskis when he scored.
In the second half, Kerala Blasters were down to 10 men after Lalruatthara was sent off for a second yellow card. That didn’t change Kerala. When Jamshedpur thought Kerala will go defensive and try to rescue a point, Kibu Vicuna’s team did the opposite. Jordan Murray scored in the 79th minute to give Kerala a 2-1 lead and then made it 3-1 for them in the 82nd minute after TP Rehenesh made an error.
Jamshedpur retaliated quickly as Nicolas Valskis scored again to bring the deficit down to one. Post that, Kerala managed to keep Jamshedpur under control and earned 3 crucial points.
Kerala are still 10th in the table but has 9 points from 10 games. Jamshedpur are 5th in the table with 13 points from 10 games.