Kerala Blasters recorded their first win of the 2021/22 Indian Super League season by beating a high-flying Odisha side 2-1. Adrian Luna starred for the Blasters, setting up both the goals in the second half.
On December 5, the last remaining side with a perfect record in the competition, Odisha FC were beaten 2-1 by Kerala Blasters. The Juggernauts created plenty of chances in the first half but were lacking the final product. On the contrary, Kerala took their chances and marched away with the win.
There were early signs of promise for the Blasters. Sahal Abdul Samad tested Kamaljist Singh in the second minute of the match, and while the custodian spilled his shot, nothing came of it. Singh made amends for his earlier error just minutes later by parrying a Luna set-piece, which had evaded all the bodies inside the box, away to safety.
At the other end, Aridai Cabrera set Javi Hernandez up for a shot on the edge of the box, but the attacker’s effort was high. Javi then tried to catch Albino Gomes off his line with a speculative shot from distance, but the ball sailed narrowly over the bar.
The game witnessed an extraordinary development in the 37th minute. As Javi was played in by Aridai, the linesman raised his flag for offside, but the referee waved play on. Odisha were unable to convert the opportunity into a tangible result, however.
The opening goal of the game arrived in the 62nd minute. Luna played a sensational reverse through ball to Alvaro Vazquez, who had timed his run perfectly behind the Odisha backline. The striker collected the ball in his stride, rounded the goalkeeper, and poked it into an empty net.
Luna again turned provider in the 85th minute, his perfectly weighted pass squeezed home by Prasanth Karuthadathkuni from a tight angle.
Nikhil Raj grabbed a goal for Odisha in the fifth minute of stoppage time, capitalizing on a defensive error, but it wasn’t enough. The Juggernauts, for the first time this season, dropped points.
