ISL 2022-23 HIGHLIGHTS: Kerala Blasters held to a 1-1 draw by Chennaiyin FC

Vincy Barretto struck a fluent equaliser against his former club as Chennaiyin FC halted Kerala Blasters FC’s five-match winning run with a 1-1 draw in the Hero Indian Super League 2022-23 match at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Chennai on Monday.

The 23-year-old Barretto ensured the Marina Machans took home a point by scoring in the 48th minute after Sahal Samad netted the opening goal of the match for Kerala Blasters in the 23rd minute.

“I’m delighted the way we bounced back with a good mentality, power and effort. We played against a team that won their last five games. As a coach, I will never be satisfied; we have to improve.

“We were brave, bold and we showed quality in creating chances. Of course, we can score more at home. But the good thing is that we know we can score goals all the time,” said Chennaiyin head coach Thomas Brdaric after the match.

Despite being 0-1 down, Chennaiyin resumed the game with a positive mindset and they were rewarded for their counter-attacking display just three minutes into the second half when Barretto produced a brilliant equaliser for the hosts. It was substitute Rahim Ali who had the first shot but the ball rebounded and Barretto didn’t make any mistake by pushing it home cleverly.  

Earlier, in a keenly contested first half, Adrian Luna almost had it on the target for Kerala Blasters in the 21st minute when he struck the ball from 40-meter distance off a free kick but Debjit Majumder pulled off a stunning save. However, Kerala Blasters didn’t have to wait longer for their first goal as Samad found the back of the net just two minutes later and put the visitors 1-0 ahead.

Chennaiyin will next lock horns with Mumbai City FC in an away fixture on Saturday.

Artsmith Media Release