Kerala Blasters brought a five-man defence to Guwahati, and Ajaraie’s double put NorthEast United top of the ISL
NorthEast United beat Kerala Blasters 4-1 on Sunday, with goals from Alaaeddine Ajaraie (2), Antonio Moyano and Aman CK, to make it two wins from two.
Oct 19, 2026
Kerala Blasters arrived in Guwahati with a clean sheet from their opening win and a five-man defence to protect it. NorthEast United scored four. Alaaeddine Ajaraie got two of them, Antonio Moyano and substitute Aman CK the others, and the 4-1 win at the Indira Gandhi Athletic Stadium on Sunday puts Juan Pedro Benali’s side top of the ISL.
NorthEast have six points from two games, level with Bengaluru FC but ahead on goal difference. Kerala, who began with a 2-0 win at Inter Kashi in Pune a week earlier, drop to sixth on three points.
Ajaraie through on goal
Ashley Westwood’s back five was built with Ajaraie and Jithin MS in mind, and for a quarter of an hour it held. Kerala goalkeeper Arsh Anwer pushed an early Jithin header wide. Then Eneko Satrustegui played a ball over the top from the back, Ajaraie was through, and he went round Arsh before rolling it in on 15 minutes.
The second came in the fourth minute of first-half stoppage time. Hormipam Ruivah blocked Ajaraie’s first shot, but the Moroccan won the ball back and slipped Moyano in, and the Spaniard finished into the bottom corner. Westwood changed things at the break, sending on Korou Singh and Sandeep Singh for Hormipam and Amey Ranawade, who had started on the right.
Kerala’s hour-mark lift does not last
For ten minutes it looked as though the changes might work. Adrian Luna flicked the ball on inside the box and Momo Yansane drove it low past Gurmeet Singh to make it 2-1 around the hour.
Then Kerala gave it away again. Korou, one of the half-time substitutes, made a poor clearance in the 70th minute, and Ajaraie curled the loose ball in for his second of the night. Arsh kept the score respectable for a while longer, saving from Moyano and Jithin, but Aman finished off a pass from Macarton on 82 minutes to complete the scoring.
Top after two games
NorthEast have now beaten Mohun Bagan and Kerala at home in their first two matches, and the win over Bagan only came through Jithin’s stoppage-time goal. This one never needed anything so late. Their next game is away to Odisha FC on Saturday, 24 October.
Westwood has more to think about. A five-man defence that concedes four is not doing its job, and Kerala host Mumbai City FC on Sunday, 25 October, looking for a reaction.