ISL 2018-19: FC Goa 1-2 Bengaluru FC – 5 talking points

FC Goa slumped to their first defeat at home this season at the hands of Bengaluru FC in the top of the table clash of Indian Super League season 5 at the Fatorda Stadium in Margao on Thursday. The home side were beaten by a 1-2 margin.

With this, Bengaluru are now levels on points with FC Goa. Goa still top the table with 16 points from eight matches. Second-placed Bengaluru accumulated the same number of points but played two matches less.

The match was an intriguing affair as two attacking sides faced each other this season for the first team. Last time when the two teams faced off at the same venue, it was the home side which prevailed 4-3 thanks to a fabulous hat-trick by Ferran Corominas. But it was not the same case on Thursday as Goa, despite having all major players in their side, failed to create enough magic and came short of Bengaluru.

After their inspiring debut season at ISL where they topped the league table and eventually lost in the final, Bengaluru are showing that they have the same hunger this time around too as they are unbeaten after six matches and improving every day.

Rahul Bheke opened the scoring for the visitors in the first half with a fine back flick from his left foot. Goa got themselves back into the game through a vital goal from Brandon Fernandes. However, Bengaluru captain Sunil Chhetri scored the winning goal late in the second half to earn all three points for his side.

The drama did not end. Both the sides played with ten-men after Mohammed Ali of FC Goa and Dimas Delgado of Bengaluru were given marching orders by the referee within a difference of few minutes.

Let us now talk about the major points of the game:

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#5 The match lived up its reputation

Whenever Goa and Bengaluru face off each other, you could expect some dramatic scenes. Last year witnessed a flurry of goals by both the teams. Also, Gurpreet Singh Sandhu was shown a straight red card for his challenge to the then Goa player Manuel Lanzarote.

This year too, it was Bengaluru who dominated the game. Despite missing players like Miku and Erik Paartalu due to injury, Bengaluru never laid back and attacked right from the start. But they lacked finishing in the attacking third. Goa too had their chances but Gurpreet denied them.

The game was a bit slow in the middle of the second half until Rahul Bheke scored a surprising goal to put Bengaluru ahead.

Bengaluru dominated early in the second half after the red card of Ali. Initially, the red card of Delgado hampered their chances, but Bengaluru quickly got back to their groove and scored the winner.

#4 Despite victory, Bengaluru missed Paartalu and Miku

Partaalu would have definitely made things easier

If one is given the task of picking out the three most important players of Bengaluru FC team, Erik Paartalu, Nicolas Fedor Miku and Sunil Chhetri would have been the picks. Such is the dominance of the two players that no coach would leave out these players from his team. But what can he do if both are injured in the same match?

They were missing one potent striker who already made a name for himself along with a midfielder who does his job quietly. ‘Bhutanese Ronaldo’ Chencho Gyeltsen was given his first start for Bengaluru and Xisco Hernandez was given responsibility to take Paartalu’s place.

Chencho was off-colour for the most part of the game and Chhetri had to take the role of a striker shifting Chencho on the left flank. The Bhutanese failed to take a shot on target and never looked dangerous within the box. Marking him was an easy task for Goa defenders.

Xisco though performed much better than Chencho but not enough as Paartalu. The threat that Paartalu puts on the opposing defence was missing from Xisco’s game. Also, he failed to provide enough balls to Chhetri.

#3 A rare off day for Corominas

Coromias didn't have the best day on the pitch

As we have already mentioned a few times earlier, Goa coach Sergio Lobera always opts for an attacking mindset and doesn’t mind if his team conceded one or two until they are ahead. He has reasons to do so. He has enough players in his team who can idolise what he thinks and act accordingly. But what if their opponents are better? What if his main players have an off day?

After the Bengaluru game, Lobera must try to address these questions. If they hope to play another final, then they have to overcome tougher teams, especially Bengaluru.

Ferran Corominas, FC Goa’s star striker who is leading the chart with eight goals, had a rare off day against Bengaluru, quite surprisingly because this was the match where he had to stamp his authority. It is also true that the only goal that Goa scored came from Coro’s heroics, but he was not seen for a large part in the first half.

Coro is not someone who will go down deep and collect balls. He only shines when he has the ball on his feet and there was no one in the Goan team who could feed balls to the Spanish striker. Edu Bedia was on the bench and Hugo Boumous too had a forgettable day. Coro was left alone sadly.

#2 Referee spoils the excitement

The referee invited himself into controversy for more than one reason

It could take time to pronounce Muhammad Taqi Aljaafari Bin Jahari, the referee for the match of Goa and Bengaluru. The Singaporean referee is commonly called Muhammad Taqi and this was the first ISL game which he officiated. Only 32 years old, he was younger than some of the players on the pitch.

He tried to maintain a tough attitude in the first half and there was nothing much to mention in the first 45 minutes. The single time he had to put his hand into the pocket was to show a yellow card to Mohammed Ali for his rough challenge to Xisco.

The second period was a busy affair for him and he invited himself into controversy for more than one reason. Three minutes into the second half, Ali was shown a second yellow for handling the ball intentionally. That was a poor attitude and there was no question about the booking.

The moment of madness came in the 61st minute. Dimas Delgado lifted his leg to get control of the ball and never really saw an onrushing Boumous. In the process, the latter got hit in the face and Delgado was given marching orders amid the rousing protests from Bengaluru players. If ISL had VAR, this shouldn’t have been more than a yellow.

Also, some of the offside decisions from the linesmen were also controversial, especially those of Jackichand Singh.

#1 Brilliant Chhetri but Bheke deserves credit too

Rahul Bheke

Captain, Leader, Legend – these are the superlatives that aptly sums up Sunil Chhetri.

Only a few days ago, Chhetri apologised to his countrymen for not taking part in India’s important friendly against Jordan due to injury. But Chhetri is someone who would not shy away from his responsibilities.

So when people saw his name on the team list, there wasn’t much to be surprised. Chhetri would come out even when he is not fully fit. So was the case against Goa. Chhetri knew how important the fixture was for his team. He came, saw and conquered.

He was not overconfident when his team was leading. He never lost hope after Goa equalised. He pressed hard for a winner and ultimately, perseverance paid off.

But he’s not the only one who stole the limelight. Credit should be given to Rahul Bheke. He was an important member of the team during his stint with East Bengal. But after coming to Bengaluru, the player improved himself every day. He is one among the few players who played every minute for his team.

The goal which he scored shows his brilliance and decision-making ability. Bheke finally registered his first goal and more than that, he was always there on the field. Whenever his team were defending or making an attack, he tried to make his contribution. The freedom that has been given to him by coach Carles Cuadrat has made him a great player.