DAGNALL, WATT LEAD KERALA TO SECOND WIN

Didier Zokora didn’t have a good time at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium on Wednesday, and he let that know. The FC Pune City captain spent much of the night losing the midfield battle as Kerala Blasters sprung to life with an emphatic 2-0 victory.

The frustration surfaced with an angry exchange with Kerala Blasters’ Mehtab Hossain and Sanchez Watt late in the second half. It boiled over when he got into a showdown with a Blasters’ official at the end. Fortunately, Pune coach, David Platt, intervened.

With no wins in the past six matches, the onus was on the Blasters to show they aren’t just also-rans. Set in a 4-3-3 formation, the Blasters outnumbered and overran Pune in the midfield, the duo of Zokora and Eugeneson Lyngdoh often looked nothing but mannequins. With Blasters’ Watt often dropping deep, the hosts had an advantage of four against two in central midfield.

For all the dominance, the Blasters had to wait for the opener. A little after 44 minutes, Chris Dagnall hammered the ball in with his left foot. Roger Johnson’s weak clearance off Rahul Bheke’s cross was cue for the Englishman to unleash the power in his quadriceps.

Watt capped a great night with a superb goal in the 60th minute.

THE FC PUNE CITY CAPTAIN SPENT MUCH OF THE NIGHT LOSING THE MIDFIELD BATTLE AS KERALA BLASTERS SPRUNG TO LIFE WITH AN EMPHATIC 2-0 VICTORY.