Ankit Mukherjee and Jordan Murray scored headers in either half to power Chennaiyin FC to a thrilling 2-1 victory against the table-toppers Odisha FC in the Indian Super League (ISL) 2023-24 at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Chennai on Sunday.
Mukherjee scored the opening goal of the match in the sixth minute before Murray pulled off a sensational winner in the dying minutes (90+4) to help the hosts secure their fifth win of the season that also ended Odisha’s 13-match unbeaten streak, handing them their first defeat since October last year.
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Roy Krishna scored for the visitors in the 78th minute.
Playing in front of the home supporters, Chennaiyin were off to a strong start with the ball consistently travelling near the opposition box as Odisha’s defensive unit looked clueless in the initial few minutes. Rafael Crivellaro struck one towards the post just five minutes after the start but Amrinder Singh managed to push the ball away, diving to his left.
However, it resulted in a corner and this time Chennaiyin left no room for the keeper as Mukherjee converted from Crivellaro’s kick with a brilliant header between the defenders to put the hosts 1-0 ahead early in the game.
While Mukherjee scored his first goal of the season, it was the Brazilian star’s sixth assist—the join-most in the ISL 2023-24 along with Punjab FC’s Madih Talal.
Mukherjee continued his brilliance on the field and had almost doubled the lead in the 36th minute but Amrinder, who has the most clean sheets to his name in the ongoing season, stood tall this time.
If it was Chennaiyin’s attack that dominated the proceedings most of the time in the first half, Debjit Majumder was equally impressive with his skilful glovework. With his remarkable five saves, he also denied an equaliser to Isak Vanlalruatfela and season’s highest goal scorer Krishna from the close distance.
Odisha kept looking for the equaliser after the break and their search ended when Krishna managed to find the target when his close-range shot deflected into the net off Chennaiyin defender.
When it looked like another draw for Chennaiyin, their highest goal scorer Murray came to rescue. Coming onto the field in the 62nd minute, he put up a spirited display and scored the decisive goal from a Connor Shields corner right at the death.
Chennaiyin will now host Hyderabad FC on Saturday whereas Odisha are scheduled to play against Bengaluru FC on March 30.
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