ISL 2022-23: Vukomanovic delighted as Kerala Blasters end 10 games winless streak against FC Goa

At the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Kochi on Sunday, Kerala Blasters defeated FC Goa 3-1 to snap their 10-game losing record against them that lasted six years. This was their first victory since November 2016. The Blasters earned all three points after Adrian Luna, Dimitrios Diamantakos, and Ivan Kaliuzhnyi scored goals within a ten-minute span. The Gaurs scored, thanks to Noah Sadaoui.

Saurav Mandal was benched for the hosts as Sahal Abdul Samad took back his starting position. Mohamed Fares Arnout, who was hurt, was replaced in defence for the visitors by Aibanbha Dohling. Redeem Tlang was moved to the bench and Sadaoui was moved to the wing as Alvaro Vazquez was inserted right into the starting lineup against his former team.

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Up until Luna put the hosts in the lead in the 42nd minute, both teams' defences were strong. Luna's diving header on Rahul KP's cross was blocked before it even reached Samad. Luna knocked the ball in from close range after the winger's off-balance shot drifted into her path.

Moments later, as the Blasters received a penalty just before halftime, the volume was through the roof. After the Gaurs were unable to cross their lines, Anwar Ali eliminated Diamantakos. The Greek striker took it and immediately sent Dheeraj Moirangthem the wrong way by stepping up to take it.

With a long-range screamer in the 52nd minute, Ivan Kaliuzhnyi surpassed all other goal scorers in the Hero ISL. Kaliuzhnyi was given a clear shot at the ball by Diamantakos. Dheeraj had little chance to halt the curling attempt as the Ukrainian was given enough room and time to draw the trigger with his left foot.

In the 67th minute, the Gaurs scored a response. An unmarked Sadaoui with a lofted cross inside the box was discovered by Seriton Fernandes. The winger scored a goal for his team by keeping his header on target, but the Gaurs were unable to create any other significant chances after that. The lone goal increased FC Goa's goal differential by just enough to keep them in fourth place.

Following the win, Kerala Blasters head coach Vukomanovic stated he was pleased with the team's performance and declared that his team showcased that they can play with different styles.

"As a coach, I always look at the global picture of the organization, our club. Our point of working with these players. We have a lot of young players, who are starting their professional career. And in that process of playing competition, organising things on the pitch, you have to think of to their development and developing different approaches and styles. How to play when we press high, how to sit in the low block and all these things make a compact team. One team can be tough to beat as trying to choose moments how to play against different opponents. Maybe, it can happen that during one game, you want to press high, get the result that you want to sit down back. With these moments, we want our team to be capable of recognising the moments of how and when we need to play with different styles as it was the case tonight," Vukomanovic said in a post-match press conference.

When asked about what he thinks are the areas Kerala Blasters need to improve, the head coach said, "In the Hero ISL, there are many teams when they start the league, they are still searching for certain solutions. You are looking and you have to find your best options, you have to find your best moments, where the players are. You have to feel how the players feel about those things. And then, the games are going by now and now we are already six games far away. Last season and this season too, many teams are now starting to realise the way and approach they need to collect the points because in this league it's about, especially now and till December and January, needing to collect points so that you can have at least a little bit of comfort, hoping that you can be up there in the playoffs."

"So this is our objective. After a couple of games when you explore and try certain things, sometimes you have to make some mistakes in order to see that it was not good. Maybe you have to change and that's the way we want to work. So, we are happy because we showed ourselves that we can achieve points with different styles. As a team it becomes it makes you unpredictable. Every opponent and every game is different. Playing at home with such a marvelous crowd or playing away, it's always different. So for us, it was kind of an interesting week, trying to find that solution. I'm glad that since I arrived here, that last year we played twice and drew against this kind of a team. They (FC Goa) are a great team and they deserve to be high up the rankings. So I wish them all the best for the next period. We will continue to work hard because we need to work hard together to achieve points," Vukomanovic remarked.

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With three points, Kerala Blasters are now tied for sixth with FC Goa in terms of points. On November 19, Saturday, the Blasters will take advantage of this momentum as they travel to Hyderabad FC for their next match. On November 20, Sunday, the Gaurs will play their following match against ATK Mohun Bagan at Fatorda.

Key Stats:
- Rahul Kannoly Praveen finished the game with 5/5 successful interceptions and 7 crosses.
- Iker Guarrotxena attempted 4 shots, but only 1 was on target.
- Prabhsukhan Gill finished the game with 4 punches, 2 clearances and 2 saves.

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• Kerala Blasters
• FC Goa
• Indian Super League
• ISL 2022-23