Kolkata: A first-half brace from Manuel Lanzarote and a seven minute hat-trick from Ferran Corominas was all it took for FC Goa to dismantle one of the finest defence of the Indian Super League at the Fatorda Stadium in Goa on Saturday. Mark Sifneos had opened the scoring for Kerala Blasters, before Jackichand Singh made it 2-2 after the ‘Gaurs’ had taken a 2-1 lead.
For a match that had already made headlines when the highest goal scorer and most capped player of the ISL Iain Hume was omitted from the match day squad, got more intensed when star signing Dimitar Berbatov, limped off after a pulling a muscle. It did not however deter their chances with Mark Sifneos score the opening goal in the seventh minute after the Goa defence failed to clear a Jackichand cross.
The young lad from Netherlands seems to have given a new lease to the Blasters, having broken their goal drought with a calm finish in the 1-1 draw against Mumbai. But in the night was overshadowed by another hero, a Spaniard Ferran Corominas. The former Espanyol and Elche player now already has scored two hat-tricks in as many matches for the ‘Gaurs’ and on Saturday created another record, the fastest hat-trick in ISL history. It took just seven minutes for the former U-20 Spanish international to score three past Paul Rachubka.
It was 2-2 when the second half started, after Lanzarote netted twice in the opening 18 minutes while, Jackichand equalised for the Blasters. The game had just resumed, when a defence splitting pass from Lanzarote took the formidable pair of Jhingan and Lekic-Pesic by surprise and Coro made no mistake putting it behind a hapless Rachubka. A chip over the goalkeeper from a similar pass followed four minutes later, while a nod in from a cross in the 57th minute completed what was an incredible hat-trick for the Spaniard.
The ‘Yellow Army’ did try to force a comeback but Goa helped with some fine goalkeeping from skipper Kattimani shut all openings to inch all three points and move to the second position in the table.