Jamshedpur FC's Shouvik Ghosh and Jackichand Singh of Kerala Blasters battle for the ball during the ISL match in Kochi. Photo: Josekutty PanackalAnother disappointing outing! Once again Kerala Blasters failed to score a goal and missed the opportunity to win a home match, but what saddens me the most is the way they played against Jamshedpur FC.
They could not do justice to the thousands of fans who took pains to travel to Kochi to watch them.
It is surprising that Blasters do not look settled yet. Despite holding possession, they could not make a single creative move and struggled to find rhythm and space.
The main problem was in midfield. Blasters desperately need a playmaker in the middle of the park who can dictate the flow of the game.
They lack a solid midfield that can feed passes to the forwards by snatching possession back from rivals, and a balanced attack to rip apart the opponent’s defense.
Prior to the start of the season, expectations around Bulgarian legend Dimitar Berbatov and the new head coach Rene Meulensteen, who has worked alongside the legendary Sir Alex Ferguson at Manchester United, were high. But both of them have so far failed to live up to that hype.
Berbatov is a pale shadow of his former magnificent self. Despite being an experienced campaigner, he was seen passing the ball around the park randomly instead of catching the rivals by surprise with some unexpected midfield creativity. Fans were obviously expecting much more from such a great player.
Goalkeeper Paul Rachubka was the standout performer for Blasters. The defense marshaled by Sandesh Jhingan, who thwarted many attempts by the rival forwards, too deserves credit. If not for them, Blasters would have lost the match by at least three goals!
It was a similar story to one that has been played out against ATK in the opening game of the season. After another goalless draw in the second home match, Blasters will have to show more intent in the upcoming matches.
