Kerala Blasters celebrate their sixth victory of the season.
Kerala Blasters get back to winning ways after defeating Northeast United 2-1 at Tilak ground in Vasco. All three goals of the match were scored in the second half. Tuskers' midfielder Ayush Adhikari was shown the red card after receiving two yellow cards in the game.
NorthEast United had the first chance of the game as Suhair Vadakkepeedika got a golden opportunity to take the lead early. The striker chested Joe Zoherliana cross and took a half-volley that was off-target.
After a slow start, Kerala came close to scoring around the 42-minute mark. Adrian Luna sent out a near-perfect corner-kick towards Jeakson Singh, who misplaced the header. Both teams entered the break on 0-0.
Kerala's Explosive second-half
The Tuskers started the second half with newfound intensity. Alvaro Vazquez discovered the keeper out of his line and tried a hail-marry from 40 yards out but missed the goal. Then striker Jorge Pereyra Díaz scored on a brilliant header to give Kerala a 1-0 lead. Díaz scored his fourth individual from Harmanjot Khabra's assist.
With things going according to plan, Kerala Blasters were hit with a roadblock as Ayush Adhikari received a red card. Adhikari got his first yellow card in the 47th minute and then sent off at the 70th minute for another rash tackle.
Then in the 82nd minute, Alvaro Vazquez sealed the game for Kerala Blasters with a spectacular goal. It was Vazquez's fifth goal of the season. Highlanders' keeper Subhasish Roy was off his line and the Tuskers striker scored the goal from his own half. NorthEast United finally scored a consolation goal as Mohammad Irshad hit a thunderous shot from outside the box in the fifth minute of stoppage time.
Post-game thoughts
In the post-match interviews, Ivan Viukomanovic, Kerala Blasters Head Coach, talked about the importance of this victory. He said, "From our experience, I knew this will be the most difficult game for us so far. We had to be focused and wanted to be consistent. The way we went into the second half, we showed we wanted to win this game. In these games, you need to win these games with character and mentality. I was not pleased with the red card, but I think these three points are going to be very important for us this season."
Tuskers midfielder Harmanjot Khabra expressed his delight with the win. He said, "We were expecting this kind of tough game because they had nothing to lose. We pulled our socks up in the second half and I am happy with the result. We were losing the ball too easily in the first half, but in the second half we pressed them and it was the mentality that the players have shown."