At midway stage after 28 matches, picture in the second season of the Indian Super League (ISL) is becoming a lot clearer on form guide. Teams that were struggling at the start have made comebacks; but FC Pune City, one of the bottom-ranked teams last season, have remained steady at top of the table after four weeks.
Top teams like Delhi Dynamos FC and Chennaiyin FC, who were in the bottom half of the table after the first week, have now moved into the top four. In fact, Delhi, after their draw against NorthEast United FC (NEUFC), are joint top with Pune but behind on goal difference.
After missing out on the semis last season, Delhi had signed some big names to strengthen their squad and it is getting reflected in their performance this year. They have won four out of seven matches is ISL-2 and have the same number of points as table-toppers Pune. A win against NorthEast United FC would have put Delhi clear on top but they conceded a late goal at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium at home on Tuesday to settle at 1-1.
Mumbai City FC also had a sort of revival as Sunil Chhetri, after missing the first two games, made a brilliant start to the tournament. They were having a good run winning three matches on-the-trot before Iain Hume’s hat-trick helped Atletico de Kolkata thrash Mumbai 4-1 at the DY Patil Stadium on Sunday. Last year’s winner Atletico were also having a bad run and had lost three consecutive matches before beating Mumbai in their own ground. Zico’s FC Goa have also been consistent and with 11 points in seven matches, they are still in the top four.
Runners-up from the last season, Kerala Blasters FC, who were at the second place after week one, are now bottom of the table and have won just one match out of seven they have played this season. NEUFC, who finished last in ISL’s inaugural season, have failed to make a mark so far and are just above Kerala with only two wins in seven matches.
The inclusion of younger marquee players and involvement of top Indian players have improved the league and goal scoring has soared in the last two weeks. There are 28 matches left before the knockouts start and teams will now slowly move towards the nervous business end of the league phase.
Consistent Pune City FC stay atop: Pune have been the most consistent team this year and have won four out of seven matches this season to stay top of the table. They rallied to a 1-1 draw against Goa in Margao on Friday to maintain their lead in the ISL. Nigerian Kalu Uche has been their top scorer with four goals and is joint second in the top goal scorers' list this year. He scored two goals inside seven minutes against Kerala and has dominated the defenders in almost every match. The thing that has worked for Pune this year is that they have realised their strengths and weaknesses and have made their gameplans according to that. Against an attacking Goa side, the David Platt-led team went with a defensive approach and got that crucial one point to maintain their lead.
NorthEast fail to make it count: After a forgettable first season, where they finished last, NEUFC would have wanted to make a fresh start but their journey so far has been quite similar to their campaign last year. With just two wins in seven matches, they are at the seventh place and a humiliating 1-5 loss against Mumbai has put Cesar Farias' side in a position where they have to seriously rethink their strategy. Despite the unfavourable results, the club has got huge fan-base in the eight north-eastern states of India but they need to win games and though their plan of nurturing young talent is heartening, it's hurting their chances in the tournament. Last year they had a solid defence but failed to score goals at crucial moments but this year their defenders have performed poorly and they looked completely out of sorts against Mumbai. They made an attacking start against Delhi but couldn’t convert their chances into goals. They were trailing 0-1 after the first-half but substitute Simao Sabrosa equalised with a stunning free-kick goal to earn his side a point.
Peter Taylor leaves struggling Kerala: Englishman Peter Taylor, who was regarded as one of the best coaches in the league, decided to leave the club after the Sachin Tendulkar co-owned side suffered their fourth loss on the trot. His assistant Trevor Morgan has taken over the club and is eyeing return to winning ways. Taylor has managed English Premier League clubs like Leicester City and Hull City and took over the team's managerial position from their last year's player-coach David James. Kerala’s performance has been the most disappointing this year. They got four points in their first two matches and were second in the table but after that they have lost four out of five matches and are lying bottom of the table with just five points in seven matches.
Chhetri’s stunning start in the ISL: Sunil Chhetri was the costliest buy at Rs 1.20 crore at the ISL auction featuring 10 domestic football players and there were huge expectations from him. The captain of India’s national football team didn’t play in the first two matches but after that he has been phenomenal and has helped Mumbai remain in contention to finish in top four. Chhetri has scored six goals in just four games and is the joint top scorer in the season so far. Chhetri also became the first Indian to score a hat-trick in the competition as Mumbai thrashed NorthEast 5-1 in Match 23. Mumbai are at sixth place but they have played same number of matches and have similar points as Chennaiyin FC and Atletico de Kolkata.
Pele relishes Indian Super League: Brazilian football legend Pele came to India and also watched an ISL match at the Salt Lake Stadium played between Atletico de Kolkata and Kerala Blasters. The crowd turned up in huge numbers and the official count stood at 61,237 as the three-time World Cup winner enjoyed the match. Pele, who had visited India after 38 years, described his trip as a memorable experience like the last time. On his Twitter handle, Pele wrote: “The love that I have received has been beautiful, just like I remember from 38 years ago during my last trip here.”
Khabra suspended for misconduct: Chennaiyin FC’s player Harmanjot Singh Khabra was suspended for four matches of ISL and was fined Rs 3 lakh for misconduct towards match officials during his team’s match against NorthEast United FC on October 20. Chennaiyin are now at fourth place with 11 points in seven matches. Their marquee player Elano Blumer has once again been their top performer and he has also been the top midfielder in the league with skills of goal scoring and creating chances for the midfield.
Comments
0 comment