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After a 1-1 draw earlier in the season, Jamshedpur FC and NorthEast United FC were involved in yet another draw on Saturday.
The two sides were part of a scoreless draw which proved to be a cagey affair due to the defence-first approach from both the managers.
Eelco Schattorie made four changes to the side that beat Pune City 2-0 with the likes of Federico Gallego and Robert Lalthlamuana coming in with Juan Mascia, the star name dropping to the bench.
Cesar Ferrando made just one change to the home side's starting XI with Pratik Chaudhary coming in for the injured Raju Gaikwad.
At the end of the match, both the sides were in the playoff places but the paying spectators left disappointed after watching the scoreless game with only one shot on target in the whole match.
Let's have a look at the five talking points from the game.
#5 Playoff places first, football second
NorthEast United and Jamshedpur FC were both in the top four places before the beginning of the match and they certainly did not prove their standing in the match.
With no difference in finishing first and fourth in the league table in the Indian Super League, both the managers decided to save some effort and set-up their teams for a defensive style of play instead of going for the win.
The home side has scored the most number of goals this season after FC Goa and the away side stands at fourth in the same list but managed a total of one shot on target in the whole match.
The home side's fans would have been especially disappointed with their team, who needed the win more than the visitors with Mumbai City just a point behind with two matches in hand.
#4 NorthEast United FC over-reliant on Ogbeche?
Bartholomew Ogbeche is the leading goalscorer this season alongside Ferran Corominas, who he could have overtaken against Jamshedpur FC but he failed to find the back of the net.
The Highlanders have won only one match this season in which their skipper hasn't scored a goal.
The Nigerian forward had a great start to the season as he scored a hattrick in the third match and helped his 10-man side scrape a draw in the next match but has started to fizzle a bit off late. He has found the back of the net from open play in only one of the last four matches.
Schattorie soon needs to find a support or backup for the 34-year old if he wants to win the league this season.
#3 Subrata Pal denies to decline with age
Subrata Pal has been one of the best goalkeepers in the country since his displays at the Nehru Cup in 2007.
His performances dipped in recent years and the doping scandal he was involved in last year proved to be the last straw in the coffin as Gurpreet Singh Sandhu took over the No.1 role in the national team permanently.
But, after failing to keep a clean sheet for six matches straight this season, the 32-year old was on hand to deny Gallego when he was through on goal just before the hour mark. Making a save after virtually doing nothing for an hour sounds easy but requires a lot of concentration and skills to pull off.
#2 Time for some rest?
NorthEast United were scheduled to play 5 matches in a gap of 15 days against sides like Kerala Blasters, FC Pune City, Jamshedpur FC, Bengaluru FC and ATK. Having a big squad helps in these types of games but many managers like to not chop and change the winning combination.
The Highlanders' manager wasn't happy with the busy schedule as he felt that the fatigue costed his side two important points.
"We had two games in a row, FC Pune City and Jamshedpur, where we had a lot of problems with travelling and this had a lot of influence on both games. Last game we won, this game we could have won. I think the fatigue was too much to make it a really good game and finish the small chances that we had," he said.
#1 Jamshedpur FC have must-win matches up ahead
The Men of Steel entered their second season in the league with a hope of making it to the finals this time around.
In their first season, Jamshedpur FC narrowly missed out on a playoff place as they finished 5th in the 10-team league.
Before the match, Jamshedpur was level on points with Mumbai City who had one game in their hand. Now, they face the lowly placed Kerala Blasters and Delhi Dynamos in their next two matches.
Ferrando would be looking to win the next two matches after drawing with NorthEast United FC at home.
