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Indian Super League (ISL) side Chennaiyin FC secured their spot in the group stage of the 2019 AFC Cup after a 1-0 win aggregate win over Sri Lankan side Colombo FC on Wednesday in Ahmedabad.
Playing their home leg at The Arena by TranStadia in Ahmedabad instead of their normal home ground at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Chennai, the 2017-18 ISL champions edged out their Sri Lankan opponents by the odd goal to move through.
Jeje Lalpekhlua was the man who scored the only goal of the game after capitalizing on a defensive error from Colombo.
After the first leg in Colombo finished goalless there was always the threat of an away goal proving decisive in the second leg, but Chennaiyin were defensively solid and managed to keep a clean sheet to ensure they were spared an ignominious exit at the playoff stage of the AFC Cup.
Chennaiyin made three changes to the team that took to the field in the first leg a week earlier. Australian Chris Herd came in for Germanpreet Singh. CK Vineeth was also brought in to play up top with Jeje.
Thoi Singh was the other change, playing on the right wing with Anirudh Thapa having to contend with a spot on the bench.
Here we look at the five things of interest from the game.
#1 Conditions more in favour of Chennaiyin FC
The first leg in Colombo was played at 3:30 PM and in very high temperatures with a lot of humidity.
Chennaiyin FC coach Gregory himself had said pre-match about how his players struggled to play in the Colombo heat and humidity with the time of day another deterrent.
Wednesday's match setting was more to their liking; a 7:30 PM kickoff and in a more favourable climate, Chennaiyin FC were able to ensure their players gave it their full intensity and the pitch too was excellent, assisting the teams in their passing.
Barring some late withdrawals owing to cramp, the Chennaiyin players largely were physically up to the mark in this match.
#2 - Mailson provides solidity to the consistent Sabia
Club captain Mailson Alves has been one of the key under-performers for Chennaiyin FC this season. As a result, their defence which was a championship caliber one last year has been drastically below par this season.
Brazilian Eli Sabia has been the best defender for Chennaiyin this season, but Mailson played well very well in this game getting to crucial interceptions and clearances at the right time.
Colombo FC had some physically strong and muscular players like Isaac Adewu and Mailson had a very good all-round game and managed to keep these players quiet for large portions of the match.
Any goal in this game for Colombo would have proven doubly valuable thanks to the away goals rule.
Any slip up could have proved costly especially after Chennaiyin FC scored. A late equalizer to make it 1-1 would have sent the Marina Machans packing out of the tournament.
#3 Two-pronged attack pays dividends for Gregory
Since CK Vineeth joined Chennaiyin FC on loan in the January transfer window he has only managed the one goal. Chennaiyin FC's lack of goalscoring options up top saw Gregory turn to Vineeth as a potential solution.
Jeje and Vineeth have alternately played as the lead striker. On occasions where both have started, Vineeth was majorly deployed out wide to provide support from the wings with Jeje playing through the middle.
But here, Gregory opted to use both up front with Isaac Vanmalsawma and Thoi Singh playing either side of the two veteran forwards.
While it took them some time to find their footing and combinations, the move seemed to pay off for Gregory. Vineeth, in particular, displayed some excellent combination play with Thoi down the right flank and initiated a fair few of Chennaiyin's attacks on the night.
Vineeth had two good chances to score as well in the game while Jeje too had a few apart from the goal which could have led to a bigger margin of victory for Chennaiyin.
#4 Karanjit stands up to the challenge from Colombo
Colombo FC coach Ruwan Priyantha Kumara had mentioned before the game that they knew what Chennaiyin FC's weaknesses were and would look to target them.
For a while in the first half, it appeared that one of their strategies was to put Chennaiyin keeper Karanjit Singh under pressure with crosses aimed into the box in the area of uncertainty for the keeper.
A 10-minute spell in the middle of the first half saw Colombo pepper the box with crosses from both open play as well as set pieces and Karanjit, who has had shaky moments this season, stood up well to the challenge.
In the 24th minute, a powerful shot from Isaac Adevu was met with a powerful right-handed block from Karanjit and later in the 34th minute he tipped over a Mohammed Fasal corner that had some good dip on it and was heading straight into goal.
#5 Thapa introduction makes a difference
Chennaiyin FC's midfield could best be termed industrious during this game. With Chris Herd sitting deep, much of the playmaking responsibility fell on Raphael Augusto and the two wide men, Isaac and Thoi.
But Thapa's introduction in the game for Thoi in the 66th minute helped Chennaiyin get a better drive going forward with the game-winning goal coming within two minutes of the substitution.
Thapa's arrival provided an additional adept passer to support Raphael and the team was able to better find and use the channels post Thapa's introduction.
Possession-wise as well, the team was able to keep the ball a whole lot better denying Colombo the opportunity to hit back.
Chris Herd had largely been unable to provide any attacking boost from the deep-lying position, often going safety first with quite a few lateral passes. Thapa's introduction also allowed Raphael to play a little higher up the pitch to link better with the forwards.
