Goa: Chennaiyin FC had to fight hard to win 1-0 over Hyderabad FC in their Hero Indian Super League 2021-22 opener at the Athletic Stadium in Bambolim on Tuesday (November 23).
Hyderabad FC put forward a decent performance although their wastefulness in front of the goal came back to haunt them later on, as Chennaiyin took all three points with a lone goal from the penalty spot.
Hyderabad dealt an early setback when Halicharan Narzary had to leave the field after taking a hit barely 10 minutes into the encounter. On the wing, Nikhil Poojary took his spot. With players like Mohammad Yasir, Edu Garcia, Asish Rai, and Bart Ogbeche continually active in front of goal, Hyderabad had several squandered opportunities..
Chennaiyin were more than happy to sit back and defend and trying to frustrate their opposition, but they had their goalkeeper Vishal Kaith to thank for keeping them into the game. None of the team could really test the opposition goalkeepers as the match was 0-0 at half time.
After the play resumed for the second half, Hitesh’s challenge on Anirudh Thapa within his own box earned the Chennaiyin a penalty which was converted by Vladimir Koman to give Chennaiyin the much-needed lead at 66 minutes. Hyderabad kept pushing for the equaliser but the match ended in Chennaiyin’s favour,with no further change to the scoreline.
Hyderabad will look to ponder over their mistakes as they next face the defending champions Mumbai City FC for their next fixture.
