ISL: Chennaiyin FC 2-2 Delhi Dynamos FC - 5 talking points

An engaging contest at the Marina Arena in the early kick-off saw the points being shared between Chennaiyin FC and Delhi Dynamos. It was a game of two halves as the home side went 2-0 up in the first half before Delhi fought back with two of their own in the second half to take away at least a point and keep their hopes of making it to the semi-finals alive, though only just. We got to see plenty of good attacking play in this match from both sides and the following thoughts emerged from this encounter:

#1 Bruno Pelissari\'s goal was special... but he didn\'t mean it

Bruno Pelissari opened the scoring with a direct effort from a corner

It drew quite the gasps as it went in and it was a stunner as Chennai took the lead through Bruno Pelissari’s ‘direct corner’ shall we say? But no matter what the commentators and Pelissari himself might say, the Brazilian did not mean that. He was intending to put the ball in there as always. Pelissari is more inclined to taking a shot as opposed to passing the ball when in good situations, much to the ire of some of his teammates. There is no way he was going to risk ticking them off even more by going direct from a corner no less. He and Chennai got lucky with the unintended improvisation that came about and that’s that!

#2 Balwant Singh continues to frustrate

Chennai’s Balwant Singh (blue jersey) was guilty of messing up good openings

He is always full of running and chases after balls relentlessly, however Balwant Singh’s poor decision making is preventing him from being an even bigger star. He goes solo when he should pass, at times trying to take a shot with two, even three bodies in his face. He’s earning his teammates’ displeasure all the while he’s doing this and while he carries a lot of talent, he needs to learn to use the ball better. Today, he failed to control a good through ball from Bojan Djordjic, which if he’d done would have left him one-on-one with the keeper and an easy finish to make it 3-0 and put the game beyond reach for Delhi. In the second half, he missed an easy header after a super cross from Harmanjot Khabra. Towards the end of the game too, he had a few chances where a better ball to his teammates could have led to more goals. He is in the starting eleven right now thanks to John Stiven Mendoza’s injury and he needs to grab his opportunities with open arms.

#3 The Del Piero moment finally arrives

Alessandro Del Piero (third from left) scored with a delightful free-kick to bring Delhi back into the game

The marquee players in this tournament have not exactly had the best of times. Either they’ve been absent through injury or been passe at best when playing. Alessandro Del Piero’s tournament falls in the former category which have seen him play limited minutes. The man, however, is a walking embodiment of class and fans were sure that at least one moment of magic would emerge by the time the tournament was done. And it came today, in Delhi’s last league game (and possibly their last game of the year). Delhi were in need of some inspiration at 2-0 down to Chennai in this crucial fixture and on 53 minutes the Juve and Italy legend stepped up to deliver a beautiful free-kick over and above the Chennai wall and past Gennaro Bracigliano in goal. A moment in time that will be frozen in football fans’ memories for a long time to come.

#4 Delhi\'s fellow competitors may not be too pleased to see them make the semis

Teams have found it hard to contan Gustavo Dos Santos (orange jersey) and the Delhi attack in these last few games

Delhi’s late rally to get into the qualification places has been an exciting time for the ISL as their attack has clicked into gear and caused a problem for each and every opponent of theirs. The Delhi attack at this moment is easily the best amongst the eight teams and the way they’re playing you reckon the other three qualifiers wouldn’t exactly be thrilled to see Delhi in the case of them making it through. They certainly have become a very dangerous side to deal with, capable of taking on any opposition. The semis would lose some sheen if Delhi fail to make it.

#5 India boys doing well

Jeje Lalpekhlua picked up the Man of the Match award

On both sides today, performances from the Indian players was really good. We’ve raved and ranted about some of the high quality football we’ve seen in the inaugural edition of the ISL, but a lot of it has been from foreign performers. In this match, Jeje Lalpekhlua, Balwant and Harmanjot Khabra for Chennai, and Francis Fernandes, Shylo Malswamathulunga and Anwar Ali for Delhi had fantastic outings. It is not just that they had good matches today, but the fact that all of them have become central components for their respective teams through the course of the tournament. With the ISL supposedly all about improving the standard of Indian football, this comes as a source of much delight for fans of the game.