Chennaiyin FC won the second edition of the Indian Super League after beating FC Goa 3-2 in the final in what was a dramatic finish. Mendoza scored the winner for Chennaiyin and later was voted as the Hero of the League.
The Colombian striker scored 13 goals this season and also had three assists to his name in the 16 appearances he made. He was the most crucial player for Marco Materazzi throughout the season and his brilliant form first took them to the semi-finals, and then his goals in the semi-finals and the final helped his team lift the trophy against the team from Goa.
The 23-year-old has made a great name for himself in India and is one of the most exciting players to watch in the Indian Super League. At times, he carried the team from Chennai single-handedly this season, and there was hardly any doubt over him winning the best player of the league award.
His first goals of the season came in their third game against FC Goa in which he bagged a hat-trick to give his team a 4-0 win after they lost their first two games. In the next game against Mumbai City FC, he scored both the goals to give his team another imporant away win.
There was no stopping him after that and he was on the scoresheet again against FC Pune City in a 2-1 win. After that, Chennaiyin FC failed to win their next four games and a top 4 finish looked very difficult as they slipped down to the bottom of the table.
It was Stiven Mendoza again who scored a hat-trick in a 4-1 win against Kerala Blasters to give his team a much-needed confidence lift. That particular game changed the season for Chennaiyin FC as they lost just once in the next six games.
He found the back of the net in a 4-0 win against Delhi Dynamos and in a 3-0 win against Mumbai City FC that put his team on the verge of the semi-finals. Their last league match saw the MS Dhoni co-owned side visit Pune needing a win to to go through to the semi-finals, and they got that result, completing a memorable comeback.
Chennaiyin FC faced Ateltico de Kolkata in the semi-finals, a team they failed to beat during the group stages. Stiven Mendoza came to rescue once again as he not only scored the second goal for Chennaiyin FC in the first leg, but also came up with one of his best performances of the season.
The team from Chennai made it through to the final on the back of a complete first-leg performance against Atletico and they were then set to face FC Goa at their home stadium, the Fatorda.
The 23-year-old saved his best performance of the season for the final against FC Goa. Mendoza earned his team the penalty for Bruno Pelissari’s first goal and was also involved in Laxmikant Kattimani’s own goal in the 90th minute.
He then made history in the dying seconds of the game as he scored from Jayesh Rane’s cross to make it 3-2 to Chennaiyin FC. Interestingly, the team from Chennai have won all the games in which Stiven Mendoza has scored this season, and that goes on to show how vital he has been for Chennaiyin FC.
Atletico de Kolkata’s Iain Hume gave him a close fight, but in the end it was Stiven Mendoza who was the clear winner of the much coveted award for the Player of the Tournament.
The Corinthians striker, who is on loan to Chennaiyin FC, made life difficult for defenders in the Indian Super League with his pace and trickery.
While bigger names failed to provide the right inspiration this season, Mendoza delivered regularly to keep his team on the right track to hunt for the title. The striker was one of his team’s best players last season as well when he scored 4 goals in 9 games, and his performances for Chennaiyin FC earned him a move to Corinthians.
What made him their best player was his consistency and his ability to turn games on their head with his persistence and precision in front of goal made him the most dangerous player in the tournament. A striker who likes to play on the shoulder of the last defender, his ability to use his pace and power to get into the perfect goalscoring positions worked very well for Chennaiyin FC.
Rumours already suggest a lot of clubs in Europe are keeping any eye on him, and maybe it won’t be too long before he gets his big move to Europe. Meanwhile, Chennaiyin FC will also be looking to retain him for next season, as it is very difficult to find a player like him and even more tough to replace him if he does not return.
