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Kerala Blasters beat Chennaiyin FC, but a heated exchange between Adrian Luna and Noah Sadaoui raised concerns. Coach TG Purushothaman downplayed it as normal in football.
News18
Despite getting the win over Chennaiyin FC, Kerala Blasters had bigger concerns when two of their star players Adrian Luna and Noah Sadaoui had a heated exchange during the final minutes of the Indian Super League fixture on Friday.
The incident took place in the final few seconds of the match when the American forward had beaten one defender and had plenty of space as he charged into the opposition’s box. The Kerala Blasters skipper, Luna had also timed the perfect run behind the final defender but Sadaoui opted to take the shot on his weak foot, which went well above the target.
Luna was visibly frustrated by his teammate’s decision to take the shot on and went to the forward, visibly frustrated. Sadaoui had even pushed Luna back as the two exchanged words before getting back to their respective positions on the field.
Following the game, the interim head coach, TG Purushothaman addressed the issue in the post-match press conference where he suggested that such situations are normal in the sport. He acknowledged that the duo are top professionals and hinted that the matter has been resolved in the dressing room.
“That’s a quite natural thing in football. That’s not an issue. Yes, they are professionals they know that it happens sometimes,” he shared.
The Blasters have endured a tough campaign as they now sit at the eighth position in the league standings where they are looking to make the most out of the final stretch of games to ensure that they can sneak their way into the playoffs.
With TG Purushothaman at the helm, the side has seen topsy-turvy returns with consistency plaguing them as has been the case for the entire season. With the last few games of the season coming up, the race to the playoffs heats up and the Blasters will hope that both Luna and Sadaoui who remain crucial members in the team’s setup will be in sync for the remainder of the season. The side will look to regroup as they gear up to face the table-toppers, Mohun Bagan SG on February 15.
