New Delhi: FC Goa and Delhi Dynamos FC settled for a goalless draw at the end of a closely contested Hero Indian Super League duel at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium here on Monday.

Goa did ramp up the pressure throughout the game but just could not get the goal. Coach Sergio Lobera will view the result as two points lost while Delhi would not be too disappointed. Goa added a point to their tally to make it 25 points from 14 matches and remain third in the standings. Delhi are rooted to the eighth spot with 11 points from 14 games.

The game began at a good tempo with both sides looking for an early breakthrough. There were chances at both ends. A corner-kick by Goa towards the far post in the fourth minute had the Delhi backline in disarray. Mourtada Fall sneaked in behind Gianni Zuiverloon, outjumped the centre-back but only headed wide.

Two minutes later, a ball behind the Goan defence caused confusion between Fall and custodian Naveen Kumar. Daniel Lalhlimpuia tried to take advantage but his weak shot rolled wide, handing the visitors a lucky escape.

Goa soon started to stamp their authority. Hugo Boumous and Ferran Corominas combined well at the edge of the box and the latter released the former into the box with a clever through-ball, but the Moroccan midfielder’s shot flew inches wide.

The battle for the ball intensified as the first half wore on and it produced a few turnovers in midfield.

Neat passing on the edge of the box in the 36th minute resulted in Corominas laying the ball for Jackichand Singh to shoot. However, a minor deflection saw the winger’s powerful shot go off target.

Goa had 57 per cent possession in the first half but not without a struggle at the back. Delhi had the visitors’ backline on red alert when Rene Mihelic pinched the ball off Fall a few minutes before half-time. Chhangte carried the ball forward and saw his shot blocked by Carles Pena before Ahmed Jahouh pulled off another block to deny Marcos Tebar’s piledriver from the rebound.

Goa continued to push for the opening goal after the change of ends. Brandon Fernandes split the defence with a good through-ball for Edu Bedia to latch on to inside the box but Delhi goalkeeper Francisco Dorronsoro was quick to come off his line and clear the danger.

Dorronsoro came to Delhi’s rescue again with a couple of excellent saves after the hour-mark. First with his legs to deny Edu, who was sent through on goal by Brandon. The Goan then almost turned scorer with a shot from distance that forced a good reflex save from Delhi’s Spanish custodian.

Delhi produced dangerous moments in the attacking third to keep the Goa defence on their feet but they struggled to test Kumar in goal and had zero shots on target in ninety minutes.

(ISL Media)

Kolkata, West Bengal: ATK boosted their chances of landing a top-four finish with a dominant performance to outsmart Jamshedpur FC 2-1 in the Hero Indian Super League (ISL) at the Vivekananda Yuba Bharati Krirangan, Kolkata, on Sunday.

Two brilliant first-half free-kicks by Manuel Lanzarote in the third and 33rd minute sealed three points for Steve Coppell’s men. Mario Arques headed in a consolation goal for Jamshedpur in the 82nd minute for the visitors.

The Kolkata-based team moved to the fifth place in the standings with a head-to-head advantage over Jamshedpur. Both teams are tied on 20 points from 14 matches.

The hosts struck an early blow when Dhanachandra Singh’s mistimed tackle brought Edu Garcia’s dribble to a halt on the edge of the box in the third minute. Manuel Lanzarote’s excellent free-kick beat the wall and a diving goalkeeper Subrata Paul as it flew into the bottom right corner of the net.

The match turned into a cagey affair as the first half wore on with ATK prepared to sit back and counter-attack and Jamshedpur unable to penetrate the hosts’ backline.

Lanzarote had another chance from a free-kick in the 16th minute. The Spaniard aimed for the same corner as he did for his goal but Paul managed to tip the ball away.

In response, Jamshedpur tried to threaten from wide areas. Memo found Farukh Choudhary’s run down the right flank but the winger’s drilled return to the midfielder was cleared for a corner by an alert Arnab Mondal. Pratik Choudhary directed a free header over the bar from the resulting corner-kick.

Edu Garcia and Lanzarote combined to produce a feeling of déjà vu for ATK and double the lead in the 33rd minute. Similar to the opening goal, Dhanachandra stopped Edu Garcia’s dart by bringing him down on the edge of the box and Lanzarote found the top right corner with a stunning free-kick.

Lanzarote had a free role in the attacking third and Jamshedpur struggled to contain the threat emanating from the ATK midfield.

The Spaniard’s dangerous ball in behind the defence for Everton Santos was smothered by Subrata before the striker could get to it. Minutes later, Lanzarote delivered a finesse effort on target, with the goalkeeper making a save this time.

The visitors went close in the 81st minute. Bikash Jairu’s chip towards the far post was met by Jerry Mawhmingthanga but his close-range effort was denied by the crossbar.

Jamshedpur managed to pull a goal back a minute later through Arques. A short corner-kick was sent to the near post by Jairu and an unmarked Arques leapt the highest to head in.

(ISL Media)

Chennai, Tamil Nadu: Brown’s intent to start off on the front foot was evident from his team selection, which included as many as five attacking players. Iain Hume, Marcelo Pereira, Robin Singh, Diego Carlos and Ashique Kuruniyan were all part of the Englishman’s very first starting XI in the Hero ISL.

The attacking intent was evident from the get-go as the away team came close to taking the lead within 30 seconds of the kickoff. Hume found Robin’s run with a delightful long pass from the left. The forward had only Chennaiyin goalkeeper Karanjit Singh to beat, but his first touch was poor and the ball got stuck under his feet denying him a proper shot at goal.

The Stallions created another great chance six minutes later when Diego Carlos, deployed to operate in the right wing, showed some lovely footwork to beat a couple of defenders and fizzed the ball into the danger zone. Chennaiyin needed a last-ditch clearance by defender Laldinliana Renthlei to bail them out.

A goalkeeping error by Pune goalkeeper Kamaljit Singh almost paved the way for a Chennaiyin goal against the flow of the match. The custodian came out to palm the ball away from an onrushing CK Vineeth, but couldn’t get enough power behind the clearance. The ball fell to Halicharan Narzary inside the box and with Kamaljit on the ground, the midfielder had the goal at his mercy. The former Kerala Blasters man, however, rushed his shot and sent it over the crossbar.

The chance injected some urgency into the home team as they started clawing their way back into the match. With both teams trading chances, it was a matter of who blinks first. Raphael Augusto came close to scoring for the hosts while Marko Stankovic was inches wide from giving the visitors the lead.

On the 38th minute, Marcelo’s free-kick rattled the post after Karanjit flew in to get the slightest of touches to the stupendous effort. It was the closest either team came to scoring in the first-half as they went into the break deadlocked at 0-0.

The Chennaiyin goalkeeper was called into action soon after the restart as he tipped Stankovic’s free kick over the bar to preserve the scoreline. Minutes later, Chennaiyin broke the stalemate as CK Vineeth fired in his first goal for his new team. Anirudh Thapa’s long range shot took a deflection and fell kindly for an unmarked Vineeth inside the box. The former Kerala man made no mistakes and slotted the ball into the bottom corner past Kamaljit.

The lead, however, lasted just four minutes as the Stallions came galloping back. Stankovic did well to ride a challenge and cut the ball back for Marcelo on the edge of the box. The Brazilian’s shot ended up inside the Chennaiyin net making it 1-1. Marcelo, however, wasn’t done just yet. Literally seconds later, his well-placed shot crept past Karanjit and snuck into the far corner adding to the home crowd’s agony.

With the match having turned on its head in a matter of just five minutes, the Stallions tried to slow the game down in an attempt to keep hold of the ball and keep Chennaiyin’s onslaught at bay.

With the clock ticking down, Chennaiyin came close to grabbing the all-important equaliser late in the match. Gregory Nelson’s shot from outside the box took a wicked deflection leaving Kamaljit wrong-footed. With the Pune defence helplessly looking on, the ball came off the crossbar much to the Pune faithful’s relief. The Stallions held on to secure their third win on a trot.

(ISL Media)

Margao, Goa: FC Goa ended Mumbai City FC’s nine-match unbeaten run in Hero Indian Super League (Hero ISL) 2018-19 with a 2-0 victory at the Mumbai Football Arena on Friday. The match also saw Goa striker Ferran Corominas score his 29th Hero ISL goal, making him the league’s all-time top goal scorer. He was tied with Iain Hume on 28 goals going into the match.

This was the Islanders’ first defeat since they went down 5-0 to the same opponents in the reverse fixture back in October. The win lifts the Gaurs to the third spot in the table above NorthEast United FC. Mumbai, on the other hand, stays in second place behind Bengaluru FC.

Mumbai went into the fixture without their top scorer Modou Sougou in the squad. The striker pulled up with a hamstring injury in the Islanders’ last fixture against Bengaluru and Jorge Costa opted to leave him out of the matchday squad, handing Matias Mirabaje a start instead. For the visitors, Ahmed Jahouh returned to the starting line-up in place of Hugo Boumous.

The Gaurs started the match with their trademark attacking flair and forced Mumbai goalkeeper Amrinder Singh into action with barely two minutes on the clock. The custodian had to be vigilant to tip away Mandar Rao Dessai’s stinging shot from the edge of the box.
With two of the top four teams in action, the match was expected to be a high-octane one and it lived up to the billing perfectly in the first 20 minutes, despite the lack of any truly dangerous goal scoring chances. Tackles flew in and yellow cards were brandished, but both teams maintained a nice tempo with plenty of attacking intent.

After the 25-minute mark, the Gaurs upped the ante and reaped the benefits almost immediately. Seconds after seeing his shot blocked off by Lucian Goian, Edu Bedia drew first blood as he applied the finishing touches to Ferran Corominas’ low cross. Subhasish Bose did slide in to attempt a last-ditch clearance, but the ball crept into the net.
With a goal to the good and their tails up, Goa kept the Mumbai defence under constant pressure. The Islanders did manage to put together a few counter-attacks of their own, but the absence of Sougou’s goal threat in the opposition half was evident throughout the first 45 minutes. The away team went into the break with a one-goal lead.

The second-half began very similarly to the first, with Mandar trying to test Amrinder with an early shot. His curling effort managed to elude the Mumbai custodian’s reach this time, but was a tad too high.

The Islanders’ first big chance of the match came on the 56th minute through a set piece. Mirabaje’s swerving free kick from an odd angle needed a sharp reaction from Goa goalkeeper Mohammad Nawaz. The youngster was up to the task and dealt with the danger. Nawaz’s reflexes were tested yet again just five minutes later. Arnold Issoko broke with pace and fed an onrushing Paulo Machado inside the box. Nawaz made a good save to deny the Mumbai skipper and Mourtada Fall was vigilant to clear the rebound out of the danger zone.

Shortly after, Nawaz was left rooted to his spot when Goian rose high to redirect a pin-point Paulo Machado free kick goalward. Luck, however, was in the Gaurs’ side as the effort hit the underside of the crossbar and came out.
With Mumbai putting pressure on the Goa defence in search of the equaliser, a rare counter attack from the Gaurs earned them a penalty much against the flow of the game. Subhasish brought down Coro inside the penalty box prompting the referee to point to the spot. The Spaniard calmly converted the penalty to extend Goa’s lead. It was the Coro’s 11th goal of the season and 29th Hero ISL goal overall, taking him past Iain Hume in the list of Hero ISL’s all-time top goal scorers.

The Gaurs could have made it 3-0 in the final seconds of the stoppage time. Substitute Hugo Boumous tore through the Mumbai defence with a powerful solo run and got his shot off. Amrinder, however, made a good stop to save the Islanders any further blushes.

(ISL Media)

New Delhi: Delhi Dynamos FC began 2019 with a 2-0 win over Kerala Blasters FC at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in New Delhi on Thursday. The win was only Delhi’s second triumph of the season. Their maiden victory of Hero Indian Super League (Hero ISL) 2018-19 came in their last match before the winter break against FC Pune City. For Kerala, the loss extended their winless run to 13 matches.

The result means the two teams switch positions in the points table, with Delhi moving up to eighth and Kerala dropping down to ninth.

Delhi head coach Josep Gombau decided to hand a start to new signing Ulises Davila, with the Mexican taking up the role of an advanced playmaker.

The first 20 minutes of the match saw the action largely restricted to the midfield with few notable chances on either end. Shubham Sarangi did force Kerala goalkeeper Dheeraj Singh to make a save on the 21st minute with a long-range shot, but the effort lacked the venom to worry the young custodian too much.

The match started to open up as the match progressed and it was the home team who were asking the right questions. Lallianzuala Chhangte, who has been Delhi’s standout player this season, looked lively down the left flank and almost set up Davila for the opening goal of the match. Chhangte played in a delightful cross for the new recruit inside the Kerala box. Davila managed to get a foot to it at full stretch, but failed to get the connection it needed.

Delhi were knocking at the door and made their forward forays count just minutes later. Gianni Zuiverloon was left unmarked in the Kerala box during a corner and the Dutch defender capitalised on it, putting away Rene Mihelic’s set-piece delivery. Mihelic could have doubled the Lions’ lead just seconds later when Nandhakumar Sekar found him with a neat cut-back. The Slovenian, however, rushed his shot and skied it.

Kerala were the second-best team in the contest but could have equalised seconds before the half-time whistle. The ball fell kindly to Sandesh Jhingan inside the Delhi box, but Narayan Das flew in to block the Kerala captain’s shot. There were appeals for a hand ball, but the referee wasn’t interested. The half ended with the home team one goal to the good.
Kerala did start the second-half brightly and almost scored minutes after the restart. Slavisa Stojanovic’s free kick was flicked goalward expertly by Nemanja Lakic-Pesic. Delhi goalkeeper Francisco Dorronsoro was beaten but the header came off the crossbar, letting the hosts off the hook.

The away team looked the more dangerous of the two sides in the first 20 minutes after the break but Delhi wrestled back control of the match after the 65-minute mark. Both teams kept creating half-chances but neither goalkeeper was seriously tested.

With time running out, Kerala’s Lalruatthara tried his luck from distance and forced an acrobatic save from Dorronsoro. Almost seconds later, Lalruatthara was involved in another incident on the other end of the pitch. Chhangte had a free run on goal and the Kerala defender tried his best to get back to put in a tackle. His intervention, however, was mistimed as he ended up bringing down Chhangte inside the box. The referee pointed towards the spot and showed Lalruatthara a red card.

Rene Mihelic promptly stepped up to dispatch the spot kick and secured the victory.

(ISL Media)