This was a match whose outcome virtually decided the destinies of two teams at two ends of the league table. For Chennaiyin FC, who started the game at the bottom of the table, it was a must-win tie to keep their hopes of a semi-final birth alive. Their opponents Atletico de Kolkata, hanging onto the fourth place, had been surprisingly shaky at home recently, having lost two consecutive matches to Delhi Dynamos and Northeast United FC.
For sure, the defending champions might have a better overall away record than most teams, but playing in front of a home crowd of over 35,000 is always a confidence booster. The home team eventually emerged victorious, but this was a match which could have gone either way. Chennai needed the victory more, and with this loss, the team that topped the league standings comfortably this time last season, are not only on the brink of being eliminated, but are also in danger of finishing as the bottom-most team in the league.
Chennaiyin start brightly
‘The Super Machans’ started the game brightly with their midfielders dictating the game and bossing over the ball. Thoi Singh with his speed, Manuele Blasi, Raphael Augusto and Harmanjot Khabra with their crisp passing and Elano Blumer with a combination of strength and skills supported a determined looking Fikru upfront who returned to Kolkata after more than a year.
However, it was a combination of defensive errors in the backline of the Kolkata defence that led to the opening goal, although credit must be given to Fikru for initiating the move.
The former Atletico de Kolkata man tried exchanging a one-two with Raphael Augusto, when his pass fell short of the Brazilian. But a failed clearance from defender Augustin Fernandes, where he kicked at air instead of the ball, and then an equally unsuccessful attempt at a sliding tackle from the normally reliable Arnab Mondal, allowed Augusto clear on goal with only the goalkeeper Amrinder Singh left to beat. This he did with relative ease using a little clip over the onrushing and going-to-ground Amrinder to put Chennaiyin 1-0 up in the 27th minute.
The home team wakes up
That goal seemed to have brought back life into the defending champions who suddenly surged forward with a sense of urgency. They kept possession of the ball for long periods and although Fikru did miss a golden opportunity to double the lead for Chennaiyin when his attempted left-footed chip was gathered by an out-of-position and relieved Amrinder, Kolkata were the team looking more likely to score the next goal of the match. Ian Hume’s header from Arata Izumi’s cross which just missed the target was a warning from the home team. Hume and midfielder Sameehg Doutie kept the Chennaiyin backline on their toes with their surging and penetrating runs.
Chennaiyin’s left back Dhanachandra Singh – a player very familiar with the Salt Lake Stadium, having played for Mohun Bagan last season and known for his accurate crossing abilities and swift runs as well as defending, – was at fault for Atletico de Kolkata’s equaliser. Throughout the first half he had been rock solid in defence, not allowing the Kolkata attackers a sniff of goal and making some important tackles. But one act of foolishness right at the end cost his team dear.
A hopeful long ball forward in the first of two added minutes before half time should have been received and cleared by him. However, as he got distracted by Doutie’s presence behind him, he hastily handled the ball to receive it and promptly gave away a free kick near the box. A yellow card was brandished, but further and even worse punishment awaited. Spanish midfielder Jaime Gavilan floated the ball in front of goal and goalkeeper Karanjit Singh could only manage a weak parry. The ball came to Sameehg Doutie who rifled a first time volley towards goal. The ball went through the melee and beat the unsighted goalkeeper giving the South African his first Indian Super League goal.
Kolkata get their reward
The second half started with the home team looking fresher and stronger. Hume started to torment the defenders with his pace. Arata Izumi, their match winner against Kerala with two goals, suddenly found his feet and started to surge forward. The deserving goal arrived in the 63rd minute when Doutie turned provider. He ran along acres of open space down the right flank. He then delivered an inch-perfect pass to Ian Hume who, with his left foot, tucked in the second goal for Kolkata and his fifth of the tournament. This also was his first goal for Kolkata at home. He very nearly added a third for Kolkata as Sena Ralte, the left back who had replaced Dhanachandra played a back pass to his goalkeeper, unaware of the lurking Hume. Goalkeeper Karanjit Singh made a lot of ground and managed to reach the ball a fraction of a second before Hume. As it was, the ball deflected off Hume to safety.
The last quarter saw Kolkata hanging on to their lead. In desperation, Materazzi had thrown on Jeje Lalpekhlua and Bruno Pelissari and taken off Thoi Singh and an understandably tired Elano. For whatever time that remained, Pelissari tried his utmost to find an equalizer using his dashing runs into the box from the left. Perhaps he was trying a bit too hard when he picked up a yellow for a desperate dive inside the penalty box. An 86th minute Chennaiyin corner created havoc in the Kolkata penalty box as the players from either team played ping-pong with a series of headers dangerously close to the goal. Eventually the ball was cleared and although five minutes of injury time was added, it was too little too late for the men in blue as they crashed to their sixth defeat of the season.
A mysterious absence
The most intriguing fact that most football analysts would ponder upon would be Materazzi’s strategy to not play a fully fit and in-form Stiven Mendoza. The top scorer of the league warmed the bench even as Chennaiyin were going down without any sign of a fight back. Instead, Materazzi chose Pelissari to replace Elano and that too at the very end when Chennaiyin were virtually down and out. Mendoza can give defenders nightmares and had he come on earlier, he just might have been able to save Chennaiyin the blushes. It was puzzling to see a player of his quality sitting on the substitute bench for the whole match and even his frustration was evident as he was constantly shaking his head as time ticked away for Chennaiyin.
On the whole, Atletico de Kolkata showed good character to come from behind and snatch an important win. The battle was won in the midfield where the home team played some quick and intelligent football. Chennaiyin depended more on their physical attributes. Fikru, Elano, defender Mehrajuddin Wadoo and midfielder Thoi Singh all won their physical battles, but that was nearly not enough to beat a Kolkata side which beat them for raw pace. The trio of hero of the match Doutie, Arata and Hume were too hot to handle for the strong but slow Chennaiyin backline.
Chennaiyin are virtually eliminated now as they are rooted to the bottom with ten points from as many matches. All they can hope for is putting themselves together and producing some match winning performances in their remaining fixtures to at least reach a decent position in the league table. Kolkata, at least for the time being, leapfrogged Pune and Delhi to sit pretty on second and look well on course for a place in the semi-finals.
For sure, the defending champions might have a better overall away record than most teams, but playing in front of a home crowd of over 35,000 is always a confidence booster. The home team eventually emerged victorious, but this was a match which could have gone either way. Chennai needed the victory more, and with this loss, the team that topped the league standings comfortably this time last season, are not only on the brink of being eliminated, but are also in danger of finishing as the bottom-most team in the league.
Chennaiyin start brightly
‘The Super Machans’ started the game brightly with their midfielders dictating the game and bossing over the ball. Thoi Singh with his speed, Manuele Blasi, Raphael Augusto and Harmanjot Khabra with their crisp passing and Elano Blumer with a combination of strength and skills supported a determined looking Fikru upfront who returned to Kolkata after more than a year.
However, it was a combination of defensive errors in the backline of the Kolkata defence that led to the opening goal, although credit must be given to Fikru for initiating the move.
The former Atletico de Kolkata man tried exchanging a one-two with Raphael Augusto, when his pass fell short of the Brazilian. But a failed clearance from defender Augustin Fernandes, where he kicked at air instead of the ball, and then an equally unsuccessful attempt at a sliding tackle from the normally reliable Arnab Mondal, allowed Augusto clear on goal with only the goalkeeper Amrinder Singh left to beat. This he did with relative ease using a little clip over the onrushing and going-to-ground Amrinder to put Chennaiyin 1-0 up in the 27th minute.
The home team wakes up
That goal seemed to have brought back life into the defending champions who suddenly surged forward with a sense of urgency. They kept possession of the ball for long periods and although Fikru did miss a golden opportunity to double the lead for Chennaiyin when his attempted left-footed chip was gathered by an out-of-position and relieved Amrinder, Kolkata were the team looking more likely to score the next goal of the match. Ian Hume’s header from Arata Izumi’s cross which just missed the target was a warning from the home team. Hume and midfielder Sameehg Doutie kept the Chennaiyin backline on their toes with their surging and penetrating runs.
Chennaiyin’s left back Dhanachandra Singh – a player very familiar with the Salt Lake Stadium, having played for Mohun Bagan last season and known for his accurate crossing abilities and swift runs as well as defending, – was at fault for Atletico de Kolkata’s equaliser. Throughout the first half he had been rock solid in defence, not allowing the Kolkata attackers a sniff of goal and making some important tackles. But one act of foolishness right at the end cost his team dear.
A hopeful long ball forward in the first of two added minutes before half time should have been received and cleared by him. However, as he got distracted by Doutie’s presence behind him, he hastily handled the ball to receive it and promptly gave away a free kick near the box. A yellow card was brandished, but further and even worse punishment awaited. Spanish midfielder Jaime Gavilan floated the ball in front of goal and goalkeeper Karanjit Singh could only manage a weak parry. The ball came to Sameehg Doutie who rifled a first time volley towards goal. The ball went through the melee and beat the unsighted goalkeeper giving the South African his first Indian Super League goal.
Kolkata get their reward
The second half started with the home team looking fresher and stronger. Hume started to torment the defenders with his pace. Arata Izumi, their match winner against Kerala with two goals, suddenly found his feet and started to surge forward. The deserving goal arrived in the 63rd minute when Doutie turned provider. He ran along acres of open space down the right flank. He then delivered an inch-perfect pass to Ian Hume who, with his left foot, tucked in the second goal for Kolkata and his fifth of the tournament. This also was his first goal for Kolkata at home. He very nearly added a third for Kolkata as Sena Ralte, the left back who had replaced Dhanachandra played a back pass to his goalkeeper, unaware of the lurking Hume. Goalkeeper Karanjit Singh made a lot of ground and managed to reach the ball a fraction of a second before Hume. As it was, the ball deflected off Hume to safety.
The last quarter saw Kolkata hanging on to their lead. In desperation, Materazzi had thrown on Jeje Lalpekhlua and Bruno Pelissari and taken off Thoi Singh and an understandably tired Elano. For whatever time that remained, Pelissari tried his utmost to find an equalizer using his dashing runs into the box from the left. Perhaps he was trying a bit too hard when he picked up a yellow for a desperate dive inside the penalty box. An 86th minute Chennaiyin corner created havoc in the Kolkata penalty box as the players from either team played ping-pong with a series of headers dangerously close to the goal. Eventually the ball was cleared and although five minutes of injury time was added, it was too little too late for the men in blue as they crashed to their sixth defeat of the season.
A mysterious absence
The most intriguing fact that most football analysts would ponder upon would be Materazzi’s strategy to not play a fully fit and in-form Stiven Mendoza. The top scorer of the league warmed the bench even as Chennaiyin were going down without any sign of a fight back. Instead, Materazzi chose Pelissari to replace Elano and that too at the very end when Chennaiyin were virtually down and out. Mendoza can give defenders nightmares and had he come on earlier, he just might have been able to save Chennaiyin the blushes. It was puzzling to see a player of his quality sitting on the substitute bench for the whole match and even his frustration was evident as he was constantly shaking his head as time ticked away for Chennaiyin.
On the whole, Atletico de Kolkata showed good character to come from behind and snatch an important win. The battle was won in the midfield where the home team played some quick and intelligent football. Chennaiyin depended more on their physical attributes. Fikru, Elano, defender Mehrajuddin Wadoo and midfielder Thoi Singh all won their physical battles, but that was nearly not enough to beat a Kolkata side which beat them for raw pace. The trio of hero of the match Doutie, Arata and Hume were too hot to handle for the strong but slow Chennaiyin backline.
Chennaiyin are virtually eliminated now as they are rooted to the bottom with ten points from as many matches. All they can hope for is putting themselves together and producing some match winning performances in their remaining fixtures to at least reach a decent position in the league table. Kolkata, at least for the time being, leapfrogged Pune and Delhi to sit pretty on second and look well on course for a place in the semi-finals.
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