As the new week of action unfolds, we take a look on the best bits of action and key takeaways from the third week of Indian Super League which starts setting pace.
Bad gets worse for Northeast United
With three consecutive losses, Northeast United’s start to the season is even worse than the previous season. They suffered defeat against East Bengal at the Salt Lake stadium, which also gave Constantine his first victory in the Indian Super League.
Northeast United finally scored their first goal of the season. A-League import Matt Derbyshire scored a header off Emil Benny’s corner. But on the other hand, their other striker Sylverster Igboun left the club disappointed by the club facilities.
Dheeraj is the best young goalkeeper in India
FC Goa vs Chennaiyin FC is a fixture that never disappoints. The two once again met at JLN Chennai and it was Dheeraj who came out as the talk of the show. Both the teams missed some clear sitters in their opportunities but Dheeraj made some brilliant saves to deny the Chennaiyin forwards. He made six saves off shots inside the box. However, he was injured and was subbed off at the hour mark.
Moroccan winger Noah Sadaoui is also off the mark in ISL. He provided an assist and scored one in the extra time to seal the game. With a new coach, FC Goa are off to a perfect start.
Bengaluru “yet to strike the right balance”
In the second game of the Saturday double header, reigning Durand Cup champions Bengaluru FC visited the Nizams. Roy Krishna couldn’t make it because of an injury. Hence, Siva, Chhetri and Javi started in the eleven while Namgyal Bhutia started in place of Prabir Das. As expected, Hyderabad FC kept the ball for most of the time but Bart Ogbeche netted it home in the 83rd minute which was enough to make BFC leave the city without points.
Coach Simon Grayson emphasised that the team is yet to strike the right balance. He acknowledged that he won the Durand Cup with this very squad but the level they are showing is not good enough to take them where they want to be. Their next game will be against Odisha FC who are on the back of a convincing victory against Kerala Blasters.
Another comeback for Odisha, Questions arise for Blasters?
Two comebacks in two opening games of the season. Odisha FC are once again off to a great start. Coach Josep Gambau would look to prevent whatever happened with the team last season when they had a similar start to this one. Striker Pedro Martin opened his ISL tally while Jerry once again showed his poaching skills.
Kerala Blasters have had changes in the forward line this season which has apparently resulted in a slight change in the way they play. Ivan’s team once again lost the game after scoring first. After the first three games, they have three points and a total of eight goals conceded, which is the worst defensive record in the league so far.
Questions may be arising but the answers are also expected to be found just in time. At this stage in the last season, they were with only two points.
Indian Team of the Week of the Indian Super League
