Kerala Blasters got the better of arch-rivals Chennaiyin FC in the second South Indian derby of this year's Indian Super League, which took place on Saturday. Chennai, who were the away side on the night, got the lead in the first half and were dominant initially. However, Kerala executed yet another comeback to beat their rivals and take home the three points.
Also read: ISL 2016: Kerala Blasters 3 -1 Chennaiyin FC - 5 talking points
It was Bernard Mendy who gave Chennai the lead, but goals from Didier Boris Kadio and C.K. Vineeth won the game for the Blasters. Vineeth, who scored his team's winner against Goa days ago, found the net twice late in the game.
Here are the player ratings for the match:
Kerala Blasters
Graham Stack - 6/10
The 35-year-old keeper had nothing much to do the whole game. He couldn't do anything about Mendy's goal as the ball deflected after hitting teammate Cedric Hengbart. He must have had his heart in his mouth a few times during the match when few shots from Chennai players deflected and went close to the goalpost.
Pratik Chaudhari - 5/10
The defender had a very tough time against Chennai captain Mendy, who played on the left wing on the night. Chaudhari found it difficult to defend the big Frenchman. The Indian player was caught out of position when Mendy easily ran towards the goal on the left wing and scored. He stepped up later in the match.
Sandesh Jhingan - 6.5/10
The centre-back was not at his best against Chennai, but he made sure that he did his job. Jhingan was decent with his tackling and interceptions. A couple of shots that deflected off the player almost went into the Kerala goal.
Cedric Hengbart - 7/10
Hengbart is arguably the best Kerala player so far. The French centre-back, who was the captain of the men in yellow, worked his socks off on the night. His tackles and interceptions were good. The 36-year old was also solid aerially. The player couldn't do anything about Chennai's goal.
Josu Currais - 7/10
The Spaniard was decent at left back again. His pace was very useful in handling Chennai's Jayesh Rane. Also the 23-year old's well-executed pass to Antonio German setup Vineeth for his second of the night.
Azrack Mahamat - 5/10
The 28-year old was almost invisible in the game. Mahamat was sloppy with and without the ball. The midfielder was not up to his standards against the Super Machans.
Mehtab Hossain - 6/10
Mehtab is one of the Blasters' most underrated players this season, but he was not up to the mark on Saturday. Like Mahamat, the Indian midfielder was also almost invisible throughout the game. The 31-year old was better in the second half.
Mohammed Rafique - 6/10
Rafique had an overall decent game against Chennai. The midfielder used his pace effectively and also produced some good crosses. The 24-year old did not have much impact on the game, though.
Michael Chopra - 4/10
This game should convince Kerala manager Steve Coppell that Chopra is not fit to start games. The former Newcastle player was too slow and was also sloppy with the ball at his feet. He slowed down the whole team. Chopra had a couple of good moments in the game and was rightly subbed off at the start of second half.
Kervens Belfort - 5/10
Kerala's best forward so far got injured early in the game and was subbed off in the 28th minute of the game. The Haitian was replaced by German.
C.K Vineeth - 8/10
The Malayali forward was very poor in the first half but got better in the second. He took his two chances very well and turned Hero of his team again after returning to the squad. Vineeth will be important for Coppell's men in the coming fixtures.
Substitutes
Antonio German - 7.5/10
The 24-year old came on for an injured Belfort in the first half and was a real threat to the Chennai defence. The English forward assisted two of his team's goals and had a huge role in their win. German was incorrectly given a yellow card for diving.
Didier Boris Kadio - 7/10
The Ivorian was brought into the game at the start of the second half as a replacement for Chopra. Kadio played a huge role in Kerala's comeback and deserves credit. He scored his team's equaliser and was the one who revitalised the Blasters.
Rino Anto - 7/10
The Malayali player, who replaced Rafique in the 76th minute of the game, made his first appearance for Kerala and did very well. The fullback gave a very tough time to Chennai's Mehrajuddin Wadoo.
Chennaiyin FC
Duwayne Kerr - 3/10
Another poor performance from the Jamaican. The big goalkeeper hasn't had even one good match in the ISL this season. He failed to hold on to a very easy cross and awarded the opponents their second goal of the game. The 29-year old was fortunate not to get sent off for his tackle on German.
Mehrajuddin Wadoo - 6/10
The Chennai fullback was not troubled much, despite his team conceding three goals. Wadoo had nothing much to do and was able to handle what came his way. However the 32-year old found it really difficult to deal with Rino Anto after he came on for the Blasters.
Eli Sabia - 6.5/10
The Brazilian was decent for his team at the back. Sabia made good tackles and interceptions like usual. He should have gotten a foul after German pulled his hand in the box before setting up Kadio. The 28-year old was also often bullied by the Englishman.
John Arne Riise - 7/10
The former Liverpool man was solid at the back for Chennai. He made some on point tackles and interceptions. The player was, however, dominated aerially. The 36-year old was subbed off in the 88th minute of the game and replaced by striker Davide Succi.
Jerry Lalrinzuala - 7/10
The young Indian also had a good game on Saturday. Jerry did very well to keep Kerala's Vineeth and Rafique at bay. The 18-year old is definitely the future of Indian football.
Raphael Augusto - 6/10
Augusto was not up to his standards on the night. The Brazilian was decent in the first half but faded away in the second. The player couldn't do much against the opposition defence.
Zakeer Mundampara - 6/10
The Indian, who made his first appearance of the season, had a similar game to Augusto. Zakeer did well in the first half, but was ineffective in the second.
Jayesh Rane - 6.5/10
The young Indian did well on the right side. Rane's deliveries from set-pieces were on point and also he was good with the ball at his feet. At times the attacker struggled against Kerala's Josu.
Bernard Mendy - 7/10
The Chennai captain was surprisingly played as the left winger on the night by manager Marco Materazzi and it worked out very well. The big player was too difficult to defend and Pratik had a very tough time. Mendy was on the score sheet for the second time in two games, but both the goals were in vain. He was replaced by Baljit Sahni in the second half.
Dudu Omagbemi - 6/10
The Nigerian worked his socks off on the night, but couldn't get any result for it. Dudu pressed the Kerala defenders well and gave them a tough time. His finishing was not at all accurate and he might need to work on it.
Jeje Lalpekhlua - 5/10
The Indian striker had a very tough game against the men in yellow. He was penalised thrice in the first half for three handballs, which pretty much sums up his game. Jeje was unable to have any impact on the game and was replaced by Hans Mulder in the 76th minute.
Substitutes
Baljit Sahni - 5/10
Sahni came on for Mendy in the 71st minute of the game, but didn't have any impact.
Hans Mulder - 5/10
The Dutchman replaced Jeje in the 76th minute of the game, but was also ineffective. Mulder gave away the ball a few times and couldn't contribute much.
Davide Succi - N/A
Succi came in for Dudu in the dying minutes of the game and couldn't make any impact.
