Kerala Blasters vs East Bengal. October 7, 2022. Ostensibly the opening match of the ninth season of the ISL. This one, though, meant that little bit more - after two years, fans were returning to the stands.
The record books will show Kerala Blasters 3-1 East Bengal. If you watch the highlights, you'll see all four were very good goals. The first saw Adrian Luna stretching to volley home a lovely Harmanjot Khabra long ping in. The second saw new signing Ivan Kalyuzhnyi slalom through half of East Bengal's defence before stroking it into the bottom far corner. The third was all Kalyuzhnyi again - a half volley from twenty five yards after the ball bobbed out post a corner. The consolation was a pretty good goal too - an Alex Lima stunner from long range. But for the 35,000 fans in the stadium (official figures, seasoned veterans of the press box say it was easily over 50,000), it was about so much more than just the three points. .
Over the years they have been witness to pretty dire stuff - 'chip the ball to striker's chest and we take it from there', anyone? But this is not a regular Blasters side. Ivan Vukomanovic's side were effective, entertaining and pretty darn good last season and the fans desperately wanted to show their team how much they loved them.
So, they came in their tens of thousands. This writer stepped off the metro near the stadium three and a half hours before kickoff - and the place was packed, the mere act of getting out of the station was a struggle. The ISL can be guilty at times of hyping things up, this is one of those that does the hyping for itself. The stadium link road had turned yellow hours before kickoff.
Three and a half hours to go for kickoff #KBFC vs #EB and it's a struggle...just to get out of the stadium metro station.
Football's back. pic.twitter.com/lOWiXHfpTb
- Anirudh (@AnirudhMenon89) October 7, 2022
It just makes football more real.
It's the little things: The ascending cheer when Luna shapes to take a corner, the "adi eda" (hit it, fellow) exhortation rising in volume as the ball travels from Luna's boot, and reaching a crescendo when it hits someone in the penalty box. The way 50,000 people rise as one, slowly getting off their haunches first, before standing up straight, yelling encouragement as the Blasters go on one more foray in between the lines. The synchronised turn and groan when Jessel slams it into row Z. The polite enquiries as to the referee's real profession when he gives a call against the Blasters, or ignores a plea, new cuss words being learnt along the way. The 'oooo' when Khabra smacks one inches off the far post. The cries of 'Luna! Luna!' starting the moment the Blasters win a freekick 30 yards away from goal, the mixture of disappointment and awe when Kamaljit Singh paws away a Luna knuckleball. The love Puitea gets when he embarks on a mazy dribble down the middle. The hush that falls over the crowd when VP Suhair gets the ball anywhere near the Kerala box. The immediate sense of anticipation when either Sahal Abdul Samad or Luna get the ball - anywhere on the field. The angry buzz that starts off whenever either gets pummelled into, collective anger rising, imploring their big men to go fight on their behalf. The explosion of relief when Prabshukhan Gill pulls off even the most regulation save. The stadium shaking - quite literally - after Luna scores. The foundations being threatened even further when Kalyuzhnyi makes it two. The eerie silence that envelops the thick air when Lima makes it 2-1. More bouncing when Kalyuzhnyi decides he wants to become a cult hero.
The match by itself was a good watch. The first half was - what this industry calls in polite-speak - a cagey affair. Stephen Constantine sides are set up one way, and that's not to entertain. They sat back, absorbed pressure, and attempted the odd counter. Vukomanocvic, meanwhile, had his Blasters playing the now familiar Ivan-way: high-pressing, non-stop running, two wide playmakers with the license to roam.
The Blasters came out all guns blazing in the second half. Luna's goal, in the 72nd minute, came after a spell of sustained pressure. New signings Apostolos Giannou and Dimitrios Diamantakos taking turns to shoot, Sahal and Luna pulling the strings. It really exploded into life in the last twenty minutes - Luna's goal opening the shackles, as it were. Kalyuzhnyi, a late substitute, decided the match was his very early on and both goals were products of sheer will as much as it was his skill. By the time he hit his third, it was too late for East Bengal. The visitors will see better days - they surely have to - but this was one of those where they get barely a mention in any but the official club website's report.
After the match, the players stayed back, soaking in the love. The crowd stayed too, wanting the moment to never really end, willing time to move that bit slower, the vuvuzelas and the Viking claps and the yelling going on and on and on.
The ISL is back, and so are the fans, with all that this entails. The shouting, the cursing, the joy, the heartbreak... after the sanitised version of the past two years, life feels just that tad bit more normal now.