Chennaiyin FC held to frustrating 3-3 draw after Lallianzuala Chhangte’s brilliant brace
Goa, February 18, 2021: A last-gasp Luis Machado penalty meant NorthEast United held Chennaiyin FC to a demoralizing 3-3 draw at the GMC Stadium in Bambolim in the Indian Super League on Thursday evening. Prior to the late, late drama, CFC were heading for victory courtesy Lallianzuala Chhangte’s well-taken brace and a cool Manuel Lanzarote penalty. Imran Khan and Deshorn Brown were also on the scoresheet for NEUFC.
CFC Head Coach Csaba Laszlo named an unchanged starting eleven from the side that drew 2-2 against FC Goa last time out. He did however name young goalkeeper Samik Mitra on the bench, while Anirudh Thapa also made a comeback from injury but could only make the reserves. For NEUFC, talismanic skipper Federico Gallego missed out with a hamstring injury.
The men in blue made a brisk start, that was rewarded with an opening goal on eight minutes. Slovakian striker Jakub Sylvestr showcased quick feet to get away from a couple of challenges before finding the Mizo winger inside the box. The latter sold NEUFC right back Ashutosh Mehta a dummy before firing a low shot that beat Subhashish Roy Chowdhury in the opposition goal to give CFC the lead.
NorthEast United though equalized against the run of play soon after. The lively Machado skipped past Eli Sabia on the left flank before his deflected cross was met by Imran Khan. Making his first start for the club, Imran headed low into the bottom corner to make it 1-1.
It was an exciting contest from a neutral’s point of view, but both sides were guilty of squandering possession way too frequently. For CFC, Spaniard Lanza took aim from distance on two instances but Subhashish was equal to it. The NEUFC custodian did almost commit a blunder when he failed to hold on to Lanza’s over-hit free-kick but was lucky to see the ball strike the upright and fall to a defender who cleared.
NEUFC then went ahead just before the break. Turning defence into attack in a jiffy, forward Brown got on the end of a long pass, raced clear and sent a powerful shot out of Vishal Kaith’s reach.
Thoi Singh replaced Rahim Ali at the interval as CFC came out firing. A two-minute blitz after the restart saw them go 3-2 ahead, with Chhangte yet again central to it all.
The Mizo speedster was brought down by Ashutosh on 50 minutes, the latter having a torrid time all evening dealing with Chhangte’s pace. Up stepped Lanza to convert from the spot and score his first goal in CFC blue.
In less than a minute, Chhangte added his second of the night after Edwin won the ball in midfield before sending the former clear. His first touch made the ball sit up well for a shot, that went in after a deflection off NEUFC defender Banjamin Lambot, sparking wild celebrations in the CFC camp.
Vishal in the Chennaiyin goal put in a solid display through the night, making top saves on multiple occasions. Especially after going 3-2 up, he made a bunch of impressive reflex saves from substitute Idrissa Sylla.
In injury time though, he was unfortunate to have committed an error after defender Enes Sipovic misjudged a cross into the box. Sylla ran on to the ball, forcing Vishal to come out. The custodian missed the ball and made minimal contact with the NEUFC striker, forcing the referee to point to the spot.
Machado’s spot-kick was almost saved by Vishal, the ball going agonizingly below the latter as NEUFC made it 3-3.
The result left Chennaiyin on 19 points in as many games, with Kerala Blasters FC their final opponents in the league phase on Sunday. NEUFC though have all to play for, as they are in 5th place, tied on 27 points with FC Goa and Hyderabad FC above them.
RESULT: Chennaiyin FC 3 (Lallianzuala Chhangte 8’, 52’; Manuel Lanzarote 52’ (P)) drew with NorthEast United FC 3 (Imran Khan 14’, Deshorn Brown 43’, Luis Machado 90’ (P))
