Kerala Blasters head coach Ivan Vukomanovic was delighted with the team’s performance in the eighth season of the Hero Indian Super League after finishing as the runners-up. It was disappointing for the Southerners to finish as the second-best team of the tournament after making it to their third Hero ISL final.
The final match against Hyderabad FC ended in a 1-1 draw after the extra time. Rahul KP scored for Kerala Blasters FC to give them a 1-0 lead in the 68th minute. Just when it looked that the Kerala Blasters will go on to win their first ISL title, Sahil Tavora equalized for Hyderabad FC in the 88th minute of the game to force the game into the extra time.
Both the teams couldn’t find the back of the net in the extra 30 minutes and thus it went to the penalties. However, Laxmikant Kattimani saved three penalties as Kerala Blasters FC players failed to go past him.
Ivan Vukomanovic said in the post-match presentation, “We have to see this as a sport and for me it’s a special feeling when you are playing in a final. It’s a big part of your career, it’s a big part of your life. So, when those things come to you, you should embrace it with a smile and joy. Of course, it’s not easy when you lose on penalties. We can call it bad luck but at the end of the day we are pleased not just for today’s performance but also pleased with the whole season.”
He added, “You know better than me that in the previous seasons, there were many disappointments. In the beginning of the season, we started with difficulties with a loss against ATK Mohun Bagan and then we fought back. We were working hard and I was proud that we played so many good games. These boys were starting to understand how we wanted to achieve things, and wanted to play. We deserved to be in the final where nobody expected us to be. I think this is a great base to build on and to reinforce, become stronger and fight back next year.”
Meanwhile, Kerala Blasters FC had qualified for the final after a long gap of six years. However, it was disappointing for them to end up on the wrong side of the result.
Vukomanovic added, “I don’t believe in bad luck. It was about penalties. If we see our points in the regular season it was double than last season. We had so many wins, back-to-back clean sheets. I think the boys did a great job. In the final, anything can happen. But we were happy to be in the final after six years. It was a great achievement. Everyone in Kerala should be happy and the final should be even bigger motivation to continue.”
There is no doubt that Ivan Vukomanovic did a fine job in getting the best out of the players at the club and he wants to continue as the manager in the next season.
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