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Bengaluru FC and Hyderabad FC played out a goalless draw at the Fatorda Stadium with pressure mounting on Carles Cuadrat after his side claimed their second point in two games. While The Blues didn't threaten Hyderabad FC goalkeeper Subrata Pal much, Aridane Santana had the best chance of the match after he overpowered Juanan and got his header on target.
Gurpreet Singh Sandhu, the Bengaluru FC custodian, had to pull out a top-drawer save to deny the 33-year-old Spaniard. The second half saw fresh legs introduced by both managers with Dimas Delgado playing a quintessential 'quarterback' role for Bengaluru FC.
Carles Cuadrat's animated figure on the touchline was one of the most notable aspects of the game, especially given the fact that the 52-year-old Spaniard is generally an epitome of composure. In contrast, Manolo Marquez was reasonably calm as his side managed to keep their second clean sheet of the season.
With the pressure mounting on Cuadrat, let's take a look at four things we learned from the ISL 2020-21 match between Bengaluru FC and Hyderabad FC.
#1 Pressure on Bengaluru FC coach Carles Cuadrat
Having joined Bengaluru FC in 2016 as an assistant to Manuel Roca and taken over as head coach in 2018, Carles Cuadrat has always been the embodiment of calmness. However, the first half of the game against Hyderabad FC saw an extremely animated Cuadrat. It was not just when he tried rallying his team, but also when a few referee decisions went against the Blues.
The 52-year-old Spaniard's behavior revealed that he is under pressure from the management to deliver results. Following a trophy-less 2019/20 season and the 2-2 draw against FC Goa, the pressure on Cuadrat is more or less justified.
#2 Bengaluru FC facing similar problems as last season
Bengaluru FC goalkeeper Gurpreet Singh Sandhu was by far the best player for his team on the day, especially with Fran Gonzalez and Juanan holding extremely high lines in central defense. While Gurpreet continues to break records in terms of clean sheets kept, The Blues seemingly have similar problems they had in the previous season.
Among their new signings, Cleiton Silva was the only one who looked like he could make something happen. Kristian Opseth, Deshorn Brown, and Sunil Chhetri all had disappointing outings for Bengaluru FC as Carles Cuadrat ponders on how he can go about fixing the goal-scoring issues.
On a brighter note, Suresh Singh Wangjam managed a good performance for his side with Dimas Delgado running the game for Bengaluru FC in the second half. Gurpreet Singh Sandhu underlined his credentials as one of the best goalkeepers in the country with a few crucial saves that helped Bengaluru FC secure a point.
#3 Hyderabad FC looking like a well-drilled unit
After the 180 odd minutes that Hyderabad FC have played this season, it is hard to imagine that they finished with just two wins last season. Such has been the impact of Manolo Marquez's presence on the Hyderabad FC touchline. Marquez comes with a very big reputation and has managed to live up to it thus far.
There seems to be a structure to how HFC play their football with Aridane Santana proving to be a very able leader of the side as well. Marquez has also managed to shore up the defensive unit with Odei Onaindia, Akash Mishra, and Chinglensana Singh proving to be as solid as ever. Cinglensana also claimed the Hero of the Match award.
Hyderabad FC seem to be a well-drilled side and at the moment, also look as though they have an outside chance of making it to the playoffs this season.
#4 Chianese and Sastre injuries could hamper Hyderabad FC
The first half saw injuries to Hyderabad FC players Joel Chianese and Lluis Sastre. While the latter could be fit for Hyderabad FC's next match against Jamshedpur FC, Australian striker Chianese's ankle injury could keep him out for much longer.
On further examination, the swelling on Chianese's left ankle turned out to be quite massive and could keep him out for at least 2-4 weeks. This is certainly disappointing for the Australian as he missed the first game due to food poisoning and faces an injury layoff in the coming games.
