That's the win! NEUFC rides on captain Ogbeche's stunning hattrick and a Rowllin Borges strike to surge to a remarkable 4-3 win over Chennaiyin FC. Chennaiyin has now lost all three of its opening games, which NEUFC has seven points from the same number of matches.
90' We will have three minutes of added time.
90' That should have been the equaliser. Orlandi heads the ball in Jeje's path and all the latter has to do is get a touch on the ball but he fails to do so. Jeje's barren run in front of goal continues.
87' How did he miss that? Orlandi sends a freekick into the box and Sabia pads it on to Calderon but he blazes his volley well above the crossbar.
85' Change for Chennaiyin: Gregory Nelson comes on for Salom.
84' That was a chance! Orlandi plays a cross towards Sabia, but the latter's header is off target.
82' YELLOW! Calderon goes into the ref's book.
80' CHANGE! Jeje comes on for Francisco, while Tlang is replaced by Provat Lakra.
78' Reagan pulls down Jerry and Chennaiyin has a freekick on the edge of the box.
74' Francisco has a shot on goal from outside the box but Pawan makes a comfortable save.
73' Less than 20 minutes to go. Can the home side find the equaliser and claim a sole point from this game?
70' Orlandi has been an injection of pace for Chennaiyin up front but the side is still unable to get past the NEUFC backline.
68' Some lovely link up play sees Borges break free in the final third but he's unable to deliver a cross. Scoreline remains 4-3 in NEUFC's favour.
66' First change for the home side. Captain Mailson Alves comes off for Andrea Orlandi.
64' Ogbeche shows off his skills in the middle of the park and dribbles past two players and eventually wins his side a foul.
61' Chennaiyin on the attack now. Looks like we'll be seeing Jeje Lalpekhlua in action soon.
58' First change for NEUFC. Lalthathanga Khawlhring is replaced by Nikhil Kadam.
54'
BORGES PUTS NEUFC AHEAD! He fires a low drive to find the bottom corner and put his side in the lead for the first time in this match.
50' The visiting side has got off to an attacking start, making regular forays into the opposition box.
46' NEUFC wins the first corner of the second half but the Chennaiyin defence fends off the cross.
And the second half is underway.
There goes the half-time whistle. What a dramatic 45 minutes it's been! Chennaiyin appeared to be in control but a masterclass show from NEUFC skipper Bartholomew Ogbeche saw him net a hattrick and make it 3-3. An exciting second half awaits!
45' The fourth official has signalled for two minutes of added time.
What a night Bartholomew Ogbeche is having! He completes his hattrick in ten minutes ('29, '37 and '39) to bring NEUFC right back into this tie.
39' SCRATCH THAT, Ogbeche makes it 3-3! He rounds Karanjit to complete a stunning first half hattrick and bring NEUFC back on level terms. What a game this is turning out to be!
37' Ogbeche makes it 3-2! The Nigerian chests down Borges' cross and thumps it past Karanjit to bring his side back into the game.
33' It's Thoi Singh again! Augusto makes a scintillating run into the box and squares it to Thoi, who manages to get the ball past Pawan Kumar and make it 3-1 to Chennaiyin.
29' NEUFC get one back! Ogbeche latches on to a rebound and slots it home to make it 2-1. Gallego took a fine shot at goal and Karanjit managed to block it but Eli Sabia struggled to clear the rebound. Ogbeche made the most of it, stole the ball off Sabia's feet and coolly placed the ball Karanjit to reduce his side's deficit.
27' NEUFC pressing ahead in search of a goal, but the Chennaiyin defence appears resolute.
24' Gallego picks up the first yellow card of the game for a challenge on Thapa. Freekick to Chennaiyin from a dangerous position here.
22' Salom nearly makes it 3-0 (again!) He finds the back of the net but is caught offside again.
20' Neat move sees Salom break free and score but he's caught offside.
15' AND IT'S 2-0! Thoi Singh finds the back of the net to double Chennaiyin's lead. Jerry plays a lovely lob towards Issac, who squared it for Thoi on the goalmouth and the latter made no mistake to put the ball past a diving Pawan Kumar.
11' Jerry makes a fine run, dodging his way past two defenders to craft a cross, but the NEUFC defence has it covered.
8' Some spirited defending from the home side on display. This is the first time Chennaiyin has taken the lead in the fifth edition of the ISL.
4' GOAL! Chennaiyin takes the lead courtesy of an own goal. Thoi floats in a corner from the left and Rowllin Borges heads the ball into his own net. What a start to the game!
2' And its the away side that wins the first corner. Gallego plays Tlang on goal and Jerry makes a sliding tackle to halt the move.
Here are the line ups for the evening:
The notable changes for Chennaiyin include Jeje Lalpekhlua and Gregory Nelson on the bench, while youngster Pawan Kumar will man the posts in the absence of TP Rehenesh.
“Everybody is talking about us in a negative way and it’s not enjoyable," Chennaiyin FC John Gregory said.
The Englishman is keen to shut out all the criticism surrounding his team and wants his players to feel relaxed ahead of the Indian Super League game against NorthEast United FC here on Thursday.
Despite the difficult start to the title defence — zero points in two matches against Bengaluru FC and FC Goa — Gregory insists that his players have trained well during the international break and isn't keen on making knee-jerk reactions. “We faced obstacles last season but we ignored them and got on with it," he said.
Chennaiyin has struggled at both ends of the field thus far and much of the focus has been on the misfiring striker Jeje Lalpekhlua, who has failed to register a single shot on target in nearly 160 minutes of football.
Comments
SHARE