ISL 2023-24: Bengaluru FC’s misery continues as Chennaiyin wins 2-0

Rafael Crivellaro and Jordan Murray found the net for Chennaiyin FC through penalties at the beginning of each half.

Rafael Crivellaro and Jordan Murray, the goal-scorers of Chennaiyin. | Photo Credit: RAGU R/The Hindu

Chennaiyin FC beat rival Bengaluru FC 2-0 in an Indian Super League match here at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium on Wednesday.

Rafael Crivellaro and Jordan Murray found the net through penalties at the beginning of each half for the host.

Owen Coyle’s men now lie sixth in the table on 12 points, with three wins from 10 matches. BFC, taking the field for the first time under newly appointed interim coach Renedy Singh, is on a seven-match winless run and stands ninth with just seven points from 10 outings.

CFC opened the scoring after a handball from BFC defender Namgyal Bhutia inside the box was spotted by the referee. Crivellaro made no mistake in beating Gurpreet Singh Sandhu from the spot with a powerful left-footed strike which the BFC keeper couldn’t save even after diving the right way.

BFC may feel a bit hard done by the fact that its penalty shout in the 14th minute, for an Ankit Mukherjee handball, was not given. The rest of the half saw CFC dominating proceedings and Gurpeet being called into action multiple times, and he was up to the mark.

After the break, Crivellaro again showcased his magic by weaving through several BFC defenders inside the box, eventually drawing in a foul from Harsh Patre. Australian striker Murray then took over and sent in a precise right-footed penalty.

The visitors tried getting into the contest at the fag end of the match, but CFC goalkeeper Debjit Majumder stood strong.

The result

Chennaiyin FC 2 (Crivellaro pen-6, Murray pen-50) bt Bengaluru FC 0.