Jamshedpur 2-3 Kerala Blasters: Murray’s double strike wins super-Sunday 5-goal thriller

Jordan Murray-Kerala Blasters

A 10- man Kerala Blasters clinched an amazing victory in the Super Sunday showdown in Indian Super League today, against rivals Jamshedpur FC. The scoreline was 3-2, with the help of a brace by Kerala Blasters forward Jordan Murray.

Kibu Vicuna, the manager of Kerala Blasters,  made 3 changes to the squad after their disastrous performance against Odisha FC in their last outing which seemed to work in their favour.

The proceedings started off pretty early on in the match when Jamshedpur FC youngster Aniket Jadhav hit the barpost from a venomous pass by Mohammed Mobashir. Unlucky for him, his attempt at goal was deflected by a Kerala Blasters defender and hit the side post, just 3 minutes into the match.

Soon enough, Kerala Blasters created chances at will. Jordan Murray missed a sitter as he skied the ball above the crossbar from a superb pass by Gary Hooper. A couple of minutes later, Murray made a run through the right flank and crossed the ball for Hooper, but he too struck it over the crossbar.

Goals – Jamshedpur vs Kerala Blasters

The deadlock was promptly broken 22 minutes into the match as Kerala Blasters scored from a spot-kick. Defender Costa Nhamoinesu headed in a beautifully crafted free-kick from the left flank by Facundo Pereyra and gave his side the lead. 

A spectacular goal by Nerijus Valskis gave the Red Miners their equalizer. The right-footed Lithuanian curled in a beautiful shot from a freekick. Kerala Blasters’ goalkeeper Albino Gomes made a desperate dive but couldn’t keep the ball in. It was a flawless execution by Valskis to level the scores.

The second half saw Kerala Blasters step up their game and create some chances early on. Still the problems were ahead, as a couple of poor fouls and yellow cards by fullback Lalruatthara saw him being sent off the pitch in the 67th minute. 

Even when down to 10 men, the Blasters persisted. Only 12 minutes later, Murray gave them their lead. A throw-in by Jessel Carneiro was passed along to Murray from a deflection off opposing goalkeeper TP Rehenesh. The clinical finish saw Kerala Blasters get the lead they were fighting for. 

Murray scored again 3 minutes later as goalkeeper TP Rehenesh fumbled to collect Facundo Pereyra‘s long-range shot. Grabbing the opportunity, Murray expertly poached the goal, bagging his brace. It was raining goals in the Tilak Maidan Stadium, and the last goal was again scored by Jamshedpur FC’s Nerijus Valskis. He too bagged his brace but for a losing cause, as Mobashir’s inch-perfect cross from the right edge of the box was headed home by the Lithuanian.

There were 6 minutes of extra time but Jamshedpur FC failed to equalize again, and Kerala Blasters emerged victoriously. It was a nail-biting finish to the game and Kerala Blasters will want to continue their fighting spirit when they face SC East Bengal on January 15th. The Red Miners would want to bag a win when they face FC Goa on January 14th. 

Hero of the Match

The award for the Hero of the Match was won by none other than Jordan Murray’s impressive brace to win the match and the DHL Winning Pass of the Match was won by Facundo Pereyra.

https://twitter.com/IndSuperLeague/status/1348304388138303489/photo/1

Kerala Blasters are going to face East Bengal next, where they will want to continue the winning momentum. Jamshedpur FC will face FC Goa in their next match on 14th January.