Match Report:Manipur Vs Kerala

In the 9th match of the 72nd edition of Santosh Trophy ,we witnessed the emerging football capital of India, Manipur facing God’s own country ,Kerala. Manipur started with the kick off and operated from right to left while Kerala moved from left to right.
Kerala initiated their first attack in the second minute of the game with the ball being played inside the box without any receivers for the pass.Manipur made their first probable attack in the third minute with a ball out to the right ,which they lost possession of easily giving Kerala defenders the chance to set up a counter attack but the Manipur goalkeeper Salam Singh collected it safely .Kerala received their first free-kick fin the fifth minute as defender Lijo S took it from outside the box which went flying above the woodwork. Manipur enjoyed better possession of the ball in the initial moments and were trying to penetrate pass the penalty line but Kerala defenders held their ground strong.Kerala found it really difficult to penetrate through Manipur’s 5-man defense as Manipur created mild chances for their side and continued with their attack. Keralites were slowly building up but a series misplaced passes where being intercepted by Manipur. Manipur came close to scoring in the thirteenth minute with a lob into the box and then with a pass from the left attacker who found the striker but Kerala averted the attack. Manipur ambushed the Keralian woodwork with long shots but the same were going wayward and did not cause any serious concern for Kerala.
Manipur have been threatening since the beginning of the game despite Kerala having major possession of the ball , as defender Chingakham Singh’s took ambitious shot in the twentieth minute from almost 40 yards that wheezed out over the post and almost caught goalkeeper Midhun V napping who managed to push it away . Kerala got a beautiful chance in the twenty second minute to score but the forward failed to get the final touch on the ball.Manipur goalkeeper Salam Singh and Kerala’s captain Rahul V Raj kissed the ground in the twenty fourth minute when both collided midway in the air. Salam Singh tried to collect a low cross into the box and in the moment partially injured himself.Team Kerala were finally getting some momentum into the game with some smooth moves but were yet to create chances to trouble Manipur.
Kerala created their first chance in the 24th minute when right-back Lijo S showed great determination, before putting in a dangerous cross into the box, but Manipuri keeper Salam Singh bravely put his body on the line to clear it out. Salam Singh the Captain of Manipur lured some medical attention from the previous clash and was taken off the field while being replaced by jersey no. 1 of Manipur Loitongbam Singh.The game was majorly concentrated to the mid-field as both the teams were unable to establish a strong build up. Kerala finally created a good chance when striker Sanjith Poulose went past a few Manipuri defenders as the ball scrambled to U-21 player Rahul KP inside the box, whose shot was cleared off the line which was followed by a counter from Manipur ,but an inaccurate pass broke down the attack for the team. Manipur continued with their attacks but failed to add any concern to the life of the Kerala defenders.
Manipur’s striker Jerry Pulamte had two chances of scoring, with his first shot from 30 yards in the forty fifth minute that was shakily collected by the keeper, but there were expectations from him to bury the second one into the goal .It had been a cagey first half of football with Manipur creating more chances. Their strikers should’ve done better to bury some of the possible chances that they got , while Kerala created arguably the biggest chance when Rahul KP’s shot was cleared off the line.Kerala made a breakthrough as Manipur struggled to clear a corner and Rahul KP”s powerful header send the ball into the box , which was anticipated by super-sub Afdal VK, who calmly finished the goal inside the net to put his side in the lead. Afdal VK made a remarkable difference for Kerala again as he made progressive runs towards the goal constantly troubling the opposite side’s defenders but team Manipur were managing it well.
In the first substitution for Manipur No.7 midfielder Jiteshwor Singh was sent off and No.8 Naorem Singh was brought in.Kerala doubled their lead in the sixty first minute with a fantastic counter-attack from them with winger Jithin MS putting in a delightful cross into the box. that fell in Rahul KP’s line whose first attempt was cleared off, but he manged to score in his next shot. Kerala faced an injury scare in the sixty seventh minute as Jithin M.S. was down on the right wing. He was finally up on his feet and Kerala breathed a sigh of relief.In the seventieth minute Kerala made another substitution bringing in midfielder No.12 Sreekuttan VS on for Anurag P.C .They continued with their goal succession with another goal in the seventy third minute. Jithin MS showed great awareness to steal the ball from Manipur’s defense before making a stunning run towards the box and calmly finished it to get a deserving goal after a stunning 2nd half performance.
Kerala received another free-kick in the dying moments of the match outside the box enabling Vibin Thomas with a low drive that led to fumble by the goalkeeper but the Kerala striker side netted the ball. Team Manipur were trying hard to get back into the game but again their passing let them down. Due to the hot and humid weather there was cooling break again in the seventy eight minute . Sreerag G did a great job in winning ball in midfield and was freed on the left-wing from where he played the ball to Rahul KP, whose initial attempt was cleared off but fell right to Jithin Gopalan’s line who made no mistake in burying it into the goal creating a massive lead in the eighty second minute . Kerala faced another injury scare as ball hit one of the Kerala defenders from strong shot by Manipur .Kerala played some scintillating football in the second half and absolutely surprised the Manipuri side with their attacking movement. It’s been a five star performance from them in the second half, with this defeat knocking out Manipur from the 72nd Santosh Trophy,2018.
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