Kerala Blasters begin new era with 2-0 away win against Inter Kashi

Pune: Kerala Blasters taste success in their opening outing of the Indian Super League 2026/27 season, with a 2-0 victory over Inter Kashi, here on Sunday. They secured an important away win, courtesy of goals from Malayali Vibin Mohanan (18’) and Andre Green (90+3’) to bag all three points at the Balewadi Stadium. With limited pre-season minutes and crucial players unavailable, the win will tally the first points under the new ownership and instil much-needed confidence in the club and their fans.

Neither team succeeded in controlling the game for extended periods throughout the first half. Inter created more chances at goal during the opening minutes, while Blasters focused more on their build-up towards the goal.

On paper, the club fielded a classic 4-4-2 formation, while Westwood asked his fullback Aiban Dohling to invert into the midfield while Sumit acted as the wide centre-back. Hormpiam Ruivah, deployed as the right-back, excelled in keeping control of the ball, where most of the Blasters’ attacks originated on the flank. James Bolton acted as the central centre-back, who was a leading figure on the pitch and displayed absolute composure on the ball against the opponents’ press.

Ashley Westwood went liberal on Vibin Mohanan, asking him to play up-front to lead the charge. The game looked more alive through the right flank, where Vibin and Korou worked fluidly to keep the Kashi defenders occupied. Aiban operated behind the attack with utmost control, without going down easily against the relentless press from the Kashi players. Fredd and Aiban combined in the middle, while Sumit locked up the left flank to let Aiban enjoy more freedom at the middle of the park. The game looked in full flow through the wings while physical battles kept disrupting the rhythm in the midfield.

Blasters worked like a well-oiled engine to find the first goal of the game. Freddy’s exquisite pass bisected two defenders and found Korou, who then drifted inside to provide the perfect cut-back to Vibin, left free at the edge of the box. Vibin fired it first-time to open the scoring while donning the skipper’s armband to make things special.

Despite scoring the goal, the visitors continued to struggle to find openings through the left channel. Sreekuttan rarely found himself at the end of the supplies, and failed to find the right pass at the moment he did. He also struggled to win the aerial duels, and Kosovic’s quiet display contributed to his suffering. Andre Green’s delicate touches to control the ball while under pressure from the opposition defence were the added positives for Blasters in the final third.

Westwood benched Kosovic and Korou in the second half to bring on Paul Ramfangzauva and Momo Yansane. This change let Green shift to the left flank and enjoy more space, adding caution to the Kashi defence.

Kashi produced more effective attacks in the second half, making use of the open spaces on the right wing. Blasters did not let it slide, while actively trying to take control of the ball with relentless attacks through either flank. Shots from outside the box to test the goalkeeper were not a rare sight, with Freddy firing often. Blasters executed well-worked set pieces from the training ground, yet the final finish prevented them from doubling the lead.

Most anticipated, Mohammed Sanan was introduced to make his debut in the second half along with Ebindas, while Vibin and Sreekuttan made way to accommodate the changes. Ayush Chikara’s solo effort to beat the defenders and curl one in threw a scare at the Blasters, who counted themselves lucky to see it go wide.

Kerala closed the game out by keeping possession and drawing fouls under pressure. While they attacked cautiously at times, they made sure to diffuse the opposition attack with discipline. Kerala closed out the game by keeping possession and drawing fouls under pressure, while they attacked cautiously at times and kept out the opposition attack with discipline. The underwhelming Kashi attack failed to capitalise on the occasional mistakes from the Blasters' backline.