FC Goa defeated Chennaiyin FC 2-0 in their Indian Super League match to go top of the table with two wins out of two.
Chennai,UPDATED: Oct 21, 2022 23:39 IST
ISL 2022-23: FC Goa beat Chennaiyin FC to go top of the table (FC Goa Twitter)
By India Today Web Desk: Chennaiyin FC suffered their first defeat of this season as FC Goa went top of the table with a 2-0 win on Friday. Goa went ahead in the 10th minute through Redeem Tlang’s header from a Noah Wail Sadaoui cross and they led 1-0 at halftime. Chennaiyin created chances in the second session but failed to find the opposition net.
Rahim Ali wasted a great opportunity when his shot sailed over the crossbar. FC Goa took the game out of the home team’s reach in stoppage time. First goal provider Sadaoui turned into a scorer as he slotted the ball home to give FC Goa a 2-0 lead.
Both sides made one change to their starting XIs for this game. Devansh Dabas took his place between the sticks to replace the suspended Debjit Majumder for Chennaiyin FC. Alvaro Vazquez started from the bench as Sadaoui took his place in the starting line-up for the visitors.
It did not take long for the match’s first goal as FC Goa took the lead in the 10th minute. Sadaoui found himself at the end of a beautiful long pass from the middle third. The Moroccan was marked tightly by Fallou Diagne, but he used his quick feet to put a cross in from the left before Redeem Tlang nodded the ball into the net.
Twenty minutes into the first half, Dheeraj Singh produced two spectacular saves to keep his side’s narrow lead intact. Prasanth Karuthadathkuni cut the ball back into the path of Rahim Ali. The striker’s effort was palmed onto the bar by Singh. The rebound fell to Petar Sliskovic, whose volley was kept out by the FC Goa shot-stopper.
In the next minute, at the other end, Sadaoui was in a one-on-one situation with Dabas. The striker galloped towards the goal before firing his shot wide. A few minutes later, Jiteshwor Singh was unmarked inside the box and got the ball in a good position. However, Dheeraj Singh made himself big and blocked the youngster’s strike.
A minute before half-time, Sliskovic attempted to score from a tight angle. Singh was on his toes once again to deny the Croatian. In first-half stoppage time, FC Goa broke on the counter with four players against Chennaiyin’s two. Sadaoui slid the ball to Glan Martins before the midfielder smashed his shot wide.
Attackers from both sides were kept at bay till the 90-minute mark. Twelve minutes were added on to account for a stoppage due to Dheeraj Singh’s injury treatment as the hosts swarmed forward. However, that left them vulnerable at the back, and the Gaurs quickly capitalized on that. In the second minute of stoppage time, Sadaoui put the game to bed with a composed finish.