Day 2, Match 2

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On the second day of the Indian Super League, two strong teams, Kerala Blasters and North East United FC, locked horns to give Indian audience an international level game. North East United FC swept a home victory from Kerala by defeating them 1-0.

It was a match in which situation changed per second giving every heart a little jolt. During the first half of the match, it was Kerala Blasters who had 60% ball possession. Their midfield was creative, forming triangles and the defence was better. Up front, they had a rather active winger than the forward. Hume scored an off side goal. The team kept on changing its technique as they had an advantage of having their manager, James, on field. They tried to manipulate their opponents defence. The home team, North East FC, started their game with two back to back headers. They came in with continuous attacks after 30 minutes. Keene suffered two head injuries leading MacAllister towards a yellow card. Koke soon changed the situation when he scored a goal at 45 min presenting a great partnership between an Indian and a foreign player.

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During the second half Kerala Blasters' skipper, Orji along with team mates Hume and Hengbart displayed a great game. Substitute Michael Chopra's entry increased the attacking strength of the team. But unfortunately nothing worked in their favour as the foundation, that previously appeared strong, now, looked rather fragile. Coordination broke midway as their was communication gap which Chettri tried to mend by encouraging his fellow team mates to talk. North East United shattered Kerala's defence later in the game. They acquired more ball possession and Capdevila added to the Greek wall.

ISL saw a world class play. Kerala surely looked stronger but it was Koke's goal that changed the situation. Hero of the Match was awarded to Greek goalkeeper Alex Tzorvas who bounced back every ball that tried to enter the North Eastern net.

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Our player of the match is the Nigerian midfielder, Penn Orji. Despite the skipper's team lost, he displayed tremendous strength in keeping his team together. He kept his team strong and pushed them to play till the end.