Luna to Sahal, Sahal back to Luna, Luna to Diamantakos, Diamantakos' backheel to Giannou, Giannou with a backheel to tee up Luna and Luna scores!
On Tuesday, Kerala Blasters scored the best team goal of the Indian Super League season.
Sixty-five minutes into the game against Jamshedpur FC, Kerala Blasters were ahead 2-1. The home side took the lead when Apostolos Giannou, who was a hint offside, conjured a cheeky backheel to turn in Dimitrios Diamantakos' grounded cross.
But this story is all about the third goal. Adrian Luna, the midfield general, receives a pass some 40 yards out. He nudges the ball forward with three easy touches before caressing it towards Sahal.
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Sahal, who was at his wily best all evening, plays a quick one-two with Luna before the Uruguayan feeds it to Diamantakos. Diamantakos, who scored Kerala Blasters' second goal, lays the ball for Giannou, who smartly tees up an onrushing Luna with a pin-point backheel.
Luna has just the 'keeper to beat. You could bet your house on it, Luna isn't missing from there. Jamshedpur's Eli Sabia makes a desperate dash to stick a foot in but the ball is in the back of the net before he reaches Luna.
Nine seconds, six touches, four men in yellow, the result: best team goal of the season. A classic display of tiki-taka, bringing back memories of that Jack Wilshere goal against Norwich in 2013.
.@KeralaBlasters take their unbeaten run tally to 8️⃣ games as they registered a 3️⃣-1️⃣ win against Jamshedpur FC! ��
Watch the full highlights! ��#KBFCJFC #HeroISL #LetsFootball #KeralaBlasters #JamshedpurFC
- Indian Super League (@IndSuperLeague) January 4, 2023
Telepathic first-time passes, cheeky one-twos, clever backheels...the men in yellow really did put up a show in front of their faithful at the JLN stadium in Kochi. And it wasn't for nothing: it marked their seventh win in eight games and took them to the third spot in the standings.
Ivan Vukomanovic's men played a brand of football that was a perfect display of what the Serbian wants from his team - rotate the ball with snappy passes, play fearless attacking football and have fun while doing it.
While the goal itself was nothing short of stunning, it was the factors that led to it that make it all the more special.
Luna's versatility
Luna = versatility = incredible goals.
The skipper played deep in central midfield for large parts of the game and was in such a midline-hugging position that you could mistake him for a defender. And that's what led to the goal. He dropped back, orchestrated play from the midfield and saw it through with a classy finish.
Giannou and Diamantakos' partnership
The telepathic connection that Giannou and Diamantakos shared was a delight to watch, but what makes it remarkable is that this is only the second time the duo have started a game together. Each knew exactly where the other would be and read each other's movements with pinpoint accuracy to thread those one-touch passes.
Giannou started the game for the suspended Ivan Kaliuzhnyi and Vukomanovic now has the headache of figuring out whether to bring Kaliuzhnyi, KBFC's second-highest scorer this season, back into the 11 or persist with the goal-making duo of Giannou and Diamantakos.
Sahal saving the flicks and tricks for when it matters
Sahal has been and is still among the most talented footballers in India, no doubt, but what's changed this season is that he's a lot more mature with his craft. He's saved his trickery and flicks for when it can actually amount to something and not merely showboat...which is also something Rahul KP has done. The result is there to see.
KBFC have played better football, but this move was something else
The one-touch passing and bursts of attacks aren't new in the Blasters camp, they've been at it for the last six-seven games but missed the finishing touch. On Tuesday, it all fell into place. Credit to Vukomanovic's men for persisting with it, which may not always work but when it does, it sure is spectacular.