Odisha FC vs Kerala Blasters FC: Who won the ISL 2023-24 clash? 

Sergio Lobera's Odisha FC started the second half of the ISL 2023-24 season with a stunning 2-1 comeback victory over Kerala Blasters FC (KBFC) at the Kalinga Stadium on Friday, February 2. After falling behind early on in the game through a Dimitrios Diamantakos strike in the 11th minute, the Juggernauts had a fiery start after the half-time break. A Roy Krishna brace completely turned the fixture on its head.

Returning to the Indian Super League after the heartbreak in the Super Cup 2024 final, the Juggernauts had a sloppy start to the encounter. In an attempt to play out from the back, there were a couple of unforced errors in possession from the hosts. And Kerala were sharp enough to take advantage of the situation.

In the 11th minute, from a Pritam Kotal throw-in, Nihal Sudeesh was released down the right flank, and the young winger utilized his blistering pace to get ahead of his marker, and pick out Diamantakos on the far post. The Greek international, without over-complicating the simple task of burying the ball into the opposition net, gave the Blasters the deserving lead.

The initial press from KBFC had the Kalinga Warriors trembling but soon the fire fizzled out as Odisha started to string together a few threatening moves right after the drinks break. Diego Mauricio, with his unwavering tenacity, broke into the opposition box and peppered Sachin Suresh with a few vicious efforts. But ultimately the Yellow Army went into the break narrowly ahead on the scoreline.

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Odisha knit together a resilient showing in the second half to down Kerala Blasters

The Juggernauts, rallied on by Sergio Lobera during the break, eyed a quick path to restoring parity. A freekick from Ahmed Jahouh almost opened the door for Odisha when Amey Ranawade arrived in the box, to poke the ball in. However, to his and everyone's surprise, the fullback failed to place the ball past Sachin Suresh but the linesman saved his blushes by raising the offside flag.

Almost immediately, another opportunity popped up when Mauricio was sent through on goal. One-on-one with the keeper, the Brazilian was outmaneuvered by the young keeper, who timed his tackle to perfection. But in the 53rd minute, Jahouh, with infinite quality, delivered a perfect cross from a corner and Roy Krishna was well-positioned to get his head on the ball. The Fijian international, without flinching, bagged Odisha's opening goal of the night and his 50th in the ISL.

The Blasters were just recovering from the early setback when Ranawade put his right boot to great use to whip in an inch-perfect cross for Krishna. The veteran marksman opted to not waste the excellent service and put the Kalinga Warriors ahead in the 57th minute. In a matter of minutes, Kerala were left chasing shadows, and Odisha masterfully controlled the proceedings.

As the referee blew the final whistle after two-quarters of the away sides' unfruitful attempts, Odisha climbed to second on the standings. They are now level on points (27) with the Gaurs, who have played two fewer matches. Meanwhile, Kerala maintained their third spot with 26 points.