Chennaiyin FC earned a point at home against league leaders Atlético de Kolkata with an equaliser deep into stoppage time. It was a tale of two penalties as Luis García’s 35th minute spot kick was cancelled out by Elano Blumer’s 92nd minute leveller.
Kolkata looked to take control early on, with García and Jofre combining well to fashion a chance, but no Kolkata player could manage to get on the end of Jofre’s cross. Chennaiyin grew into the game, doing the bulk of the attacking with John Stiven Mendoza and Jean-Eudes Maurice looking particularly impressive. Against the run of play, however, Atlético de Kolkata took the lead. Chennaiyin goalkeeper Shilton Paul raced off his line to deal with a long ball forward towards Mohammed Rafi, but the onrushing Rafi got to the ball first before Paul clattered into the striker. The keeper received a straight red for denying a clear goalscoring opportunity, and García made no mistake, tucking the penalty into the bottom right corner past substitute keeper Gennaro Bracigliano.
Chennai pushed on in search of an equaliser, despite their numerical disadvantage, not to mention the loss of an attacking player as Maurice was substituted so Bracigliano could come on, but Kolkata preserved their lead going into halftime
The home side’s job became slightly easier in the beginning of the second half, as Kolkata saw a player sent off as well, with Jofre picking up a second yellow. With the game now ten vs ten, Chennai were the dominant force. Bernard Mendy in particular drove forward from the back with a few eye-catching runs. Kolkata were content playing on the counter, and came close to extending their lead when Borja saw Bracigliano off his line and launched a spectacular long-range shot, although Bracigliano retreated in time make the save.
Chennaiyin’s pressure finally paid off in stoppage time, when Mendoza was brought down in the box by Kingshuk Debnath. Elano, the league’s leading scorer, smashed home the subsequent penalty emphatically into the top left corner to level the score.
Elano was later awarded the ‘Swift Moment of the Match’ for his goal, with Mendy picking up the ‘Amul Fittest Player of the Match’ award and Chennaiyin midfielder Harmanjot Khabra earning the ‘ISL Emerging Player of the Match’ accolade. García was named the ‘Hero of the Match’.
Head coach Marco Materazzi will relish the hard-earned point. He will nonetheless want to get back to winning ways when Chennaiyin take on NorthEast United FC at home on November 8. Kolkata will also want to win their home match against Pune City FC on November 7 to cement their place atop the standings
GOOSSENS HEADER GIVES PUNE FC CRUCIAL HOME WIN AGAINST HIGHLANDERS
It was a must win game for Coach Colomba and his boys and you just need one stat to show the intent with which we approached the game. 21 shots on target in 90 minutes!FC Pune City had the game by the neck from the very first minute. Israil Gurung and Lenny Rodrigues made their way into the team, as did Davide Colomba. The intent was clear from the very first minute- to attack. North East FC had come here with a good record of away performances but ultimately gave in to the relentless attack by FC Pune City.The first half started with both the teams pressing well and creating chances, but none seeing the back of the net. FC Pune City started with the attacking threat of David Trezeguet and Ivan Bolado upfront and supported by the runs of Kostas. The trio found many chances in the first half, especially a shot from close range by Kostas, which was well blocked by the goal keeper TP Rehenesh. While at the other end, Arindam Bhattacharya is giving Franco Colomba enough to smile about these days, as he sprung forward from his line in a Manuel Neueresque way to stop Durga Boro from running free and scoring. While it was blink and miss action in the first half, both teams returned to the dug out scoreless.With a goal and a home win in sight, Coach Colomba made a few key tactical substitutions in the second half that changed the nature of the game! On came John Goossens and Dudu Omagbemi, and off came- captain David Trezeguet! It was a brave move, but turned out to be a brilliant one in the end! Dudu was a workhorse on the field, making runs and creating chances incessantly! If North East were to concentrate on him, they would lose track of Lenny Rodrigues, John Goossens and Davide Colomba taking shots from distance! It was all happening on the field and when Davide Colomba’s shot was cleared off the goal line, one had a feeling that Pune must strike home!And they did so in style! John Goossens had been slightly unlucky on previous occasions, but when Dudu Omagbemi took a wonderstrike at the 88th minute, it hit the crossbar John Goossens made no mistake in heading it home! The crowd went berserk, the players huddled on top of one another and coach Colomba running down the field with the enthusiasm of a 17 year old boy.And why wouldn’t they! This performance comes as a huge morale boost for the team `who are not only in the top four of the standings right now, but head to Kolkata for the next match on a high momentum!
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