Half Time Report: Chennaiyin hang on to lead through penalty against spirited Blasters
Kerala Blasters FC - Stephen Bywater, Saumik Dey, Peter Ramage, Sandesh Jhingan, Rahul Bheke, Mehtab Hossain, Joao Coimbra, Bruno Perone, Sanchez Watt, Mohammad Rafi, Chris Dagnall
Chennaiyin FC - Karanjit Singh, Mehrajuddin Wadoo, Mailson Alves, Alessandro Potenza, Lalhmangaihsanga Ralte, Raphael Augusto, Manuele Blasi, Thoi Singh, Elano, Jeje Lalpekhlua, Stiven Mendoza
A PENALTY AGAINST THE RUN OF PLAY allowed Chennaiyin FC take a 1-0 lead over hosts Kerala Blasters in the first half of the ISL fixture at Kochi tonight.
On charge for the first game, Trevor James Morgan introduced some fundamental changes in the Kerala Blasters line-up. No longer were they playing with the defence-heavy 5-3-2 but switched to a more aggressive 4-3-1-2 that made more use of the flanks. The new formation also allowed him to assemble a team that made the most of the individual talents in the team, fielding against a tough Chennaiyin side a first eleven that on paper looked stronger than those fielded before this season. He made 3 changes in the side: Bruno Perone, Sanchez Watt and Saumik Dey came into the side.
Chennaiyin FC also made 3 changes of their own in the starting line-up, bringing in Lalhmangaihsanga Ralte, Alessandro Potenza and Jeje Lalpekhlua into the side ahead of what Materazzi must have perceived as a difficult away fixture in spite of Kerala being at the bottom of the table.
And he was right. The new approach seemed to have enlivened the Blasters into being a more aggressive side that could work the midfield with vigour and throw more bodies forward at short notice. They were playing with a lot of bravado and little conservativeness.
The Chennaiyin defence was called to task early with Coimbra feeding Dagnall who had some space inside the box. He forwarded the ball to Watt who was brilliantly tackled by Mehrajuddin Wadoo to avert a major danger for the visitors.
The match went on with Kerala asking a number of questions of the Chennai defence. Rafi, Watt and the rest never seemed to be far from the Chennai box and the danger continued to loom for the longest time. Mailson managed to hold off a run by Rafi, then Coimbra's sharp through ball by Coimbra got intercepted by Ralte. Rafi failed to keep a header off a Saumik Dey cross on target.
Chennaiyin tried to make a few counters. Wadoo's pass to Jeje saw the national team striker butter the chance with a poor reception. Later Jeje's pass to Mendoza saw the joint top scorer take a shot which came off the defender towards Raphael who tried to pass it back to Mendoza but sent the ball out instead.
Coimbra's pass to Dagnall saw the striker come close as he charged at the goal with the ball. Karanjit sprinted out of his line to meet him and make a block to keep Chennai level.
Then things suddenly took a turn for the worse. As a high ball flew into the box Sandesh Jhingan got tangled up with Stiven Mendoza. The Chennaiyin striker went down and the referee immediately pointed towards the penalty spot. Kerala players protested but it was to no avail; Elano took the spot kick, cool as ever, sending Bywater the other way. Suddenly Chennai were 1-0 up and the complexion of the game had changed.
Chennai made some more onslaughts. Wadoo's pass to Mendoza saw the latter shoot on target but Bywater managed to save it with a brilliant dive to his left. Kerala tried to counter but Dagnall's shot went to straight to Karanjit.
Things got worse for Kerala towards the end of the half as Joao Coimbra picked up an injury and had to be replaced.
The half ended with Chennaiyin FC leading by the solitary goal. That does not mean the game is over by any means. Kerala were definitely the more attacking side in the first half and if they keep their head and play their game there is no reason to think they can't get back in the game. Trevor Morgan's teams, especially East Bengal, have been known for their match-clinching late goals. Whether he can bring that magic over to the Blasters remains to be seen.
