If you ask me whether I am happy or not, if you ask me if I am very disappointed, it is not the same’ – Kerala Blasters coach Mikael Starre was not in a good mood when he came to the press conference after the 1-1 draw against North East United in Guwahati.

He was furious that his side were unable to capitalize on the dominance they had when North East were reduced to 10 men when defender Ashir Akhtar was sent off in the 81st minute. The confusion in the finals that Blasters have been facing for years was repeated in the last game as well. 3 matches each with a win, a loss and a draw. Here are 5 things that have stood out in the Blasters’ performance so far this season.

Supernova by Blasters

Moroccan player Nova Sadoui has become the star player of Blasters by scoring 2 goals in three games. There is no doubt that the 31-year-old Nova is the superstar of the Blasters this season, who plays in the midfield and on both wings. Blasters can dream big if Nova continues his form, scoring 23 goals in 43 games in the last 2 seasons at FC Goa. Nova’s attitude has won praise for his attitude as he kept his touch from the ball despite colliding with North East player Aladdin Ajari and fracturing his head.

Finishing Lineup

‘I believe in the finishing line-up, not the starting line-up’ – this was coach Stare’s punch dialogue before the North East match. It has been proven that the Brahmastras can change the game by keeping the star until the end of the second half without dropping him in the starting line-up. Substitute Kwame Pepra scored against East Bengal. Mohammad Aymanu, who started in the second half against North East, failed to score twice due to bad luck.

Creative midfield

Starre first spoke about vertical football when he took charge of the Blasters. He spoke of the importance in his style of forward passes that go directly to the opposition goal instead of sloppy passes. The problem the Blasters faced in the absence of Adrien Luna was the absence of a creative midfield. The lack of attacking midfielders in the team also became a problem. We can definitely expect that the middle order will be stronger as the young Malayali player Vibin Mohan gets more competitive experience.

Problems with defense

The cracks on the right wing of the Blasters defense guarded by Milos Drincic and Pritam Kotal have been evident in recent games. In the match against North East, there was a feeling that Sandeep Singh, who is assigned as a wing attack, did not focus enough on defense. This is why the coach was forced to withdraw Sandeep and field Hormipam in the second half. Everything that went wrong in defense for Blasters in the game was in this part.

The Ghost in the Final Thade

A ship that has crossed the seven seas and has sunk in a sea is often the goal of blasters! The ball that reaches the penalty area from the midfield has no one to guide it to the goal. Noa Sadoui’s 3 crosses in the last game were wasted without anyone to connect with. Mohammad Ayman missed the open post 2 times. KP 2 shots by Rahul and Danish Farooq were missed. If central forward Jesus Himene, who scored a goal in the debut match, takes the field, all this problem will be solved!