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The second season of the Indian Super League kicked off with Chennaiyin losing 3-2 to Atletico de Kolkata at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium (aka Marina Arena) in Chennai on Saturday night. A brace from Helder Postiga helped the defending champions seal all three points but they lost the Portuguese striker to a possible hamstring injury in the second half immediately after he scored the second.
Valdo also got on the scoresheet for Atletico de Kolkata with a neat header. Meanwhile, Jeje Lalpekhlua and Elano scored for the Chennai side but they couldn’t find a way back in spite of five minutes added on.
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First Half: Both goals scored from defensive mix-ups
Chennaiyin manager Marco Materazzi sprung a surprise even before kick off as neither John Stiven Mendoza nor Bruno Pelissari found a place in the staring line-up for Chennai. For Kolkata, Antonio Habas stuck with what was expected, as Iain Hume partnered Helder Postiga in attack.
Chennai got going straight away and Elano forced a corner kick in the first minute that was headed wide by Jeje Lalpekhlua. An interruption ensued for a couple of minutes as the stadium dog had its moment in the limelight.
Upon resumption of play, Iain Hume won a free kick that Javi Lara struck well over the bar. Once the game settled down, both sides were largely sparring and gauging each other, before Fikru Teferra was picked out by left-back Lalhmangaihsanga Ralte but the big Ethiopian was off target as he tried to curl the ball into the top corner of Amrinder Singh's net. Once again, Kolkata hit back immediately with a chance of their own, as Borja Fernandez hit a low shot straight into the palms of Edel Bete in the Chennaiyin goal.
In the 13th minute, a seemingly harmless free-kick brought Kolkata a goal as Mailson Alves got in Edel's way and the loose ball fell at Postiga's feet. The Portuguese man tapped into an empty net from two yards out with nobody to challenge him.
Chennaiyin looked to hit back straight away as a cute dink from Elano found Fikru in space in the box but the striker pulled his left-footed shot wide. Fikru had another chance to threaten the Kolkata goal, but after running half the length of the pitch, he hit his shot straight at Ofentse Nato, who was playing at the heart of Kolkata's defence in the absence of the experienced Josemi.
Elano was next to go close, as the Brazilian made some room for himself just outside the area but dragged his shot wide. It was all Chennaiyin as Kolkata seemed content to hold on to their advantage, with Hume and Postiga barely making an impression on the game. It looked like it was only a matter of time before Chennaiyin equalized and in the 31st minute, Chennaiyin got the goal they deserved.
An intelligent pass from Elano found the head of Fikru and after a little scramble, Jeje Lalpekhlua found an open net to put the ball into, thereby becoming the first Indian goalscorer of ISL 2015, following in the footsteps of his Chennaiyin and Mohun Bagan teammate Balwant Singh.
Chennaiyin continued to press forward and both Jeje and Elano had half chances to give them the lead. It remained level as the teams headed into the break with Chennaiyin much the dominant side for large parts of the half.
Half time: Chennaiyin FC 1-1 Atletico de Kolkata
Second Half: Postiga and Valdo ensure Atletico de Kolkata win
Chennaiyin made a half-time substitution as Bernard Mendy came on to replace Mailson Alves at centre-back. After a dull start to the second half, Javi Lara scythed past the Chennaiyin defence, but his shot was deflected behind by Alessandro Potenza.
Kolkata were seeing much more of the ball in the second half with Hume getting involved more, but the final ball was still lacking for the defending champions. Meanwhile, Jeje put a header wide after a good cross from Ralte. Kolkata came really close to taking the lead as Jaime Gavilan hit the post from a free kick won by Helder Postiga.
The crowd were then given a huge lift as Mendoza was brought on in place of Fikru. The little Colombian looked to make an immediate impact with a shot, that was blocked by Nato. Mendoza took the resulting corner which fell to Raphael Augusto, who shot high over the bar. The second half saw a lot more ruggedness in midfield as the likes of Baljit Sahni, Thoi Singh and Harmanjot Khabra went into their tackles with intent.
Kolkata were provided with another gift as they regained the lead with Postiga's second goal on the night. Mendy's back header intended for Edel fell straight into the path of the Portuguese man, who accepted his second gift of the game. Postiga also picked up an injury in the process of scoring the goal, and he was stretchered off, replaced by Valdo.
And the Spaniard made an immediate impact, as a clever play down the left flank from Iain Hume set him up for a header that he dispatched with minimal fuss to send the defending champions into a frenzy. Kolkata then absolutely seized the initiative. They were awarded a penalty after Mendy was alleged to have handled Lara's cross inside his area. Lara himself stepped up to take the penalty, but it was brilliantly parried by Edel.
Some slack defending from Kolkata let Mendoza in space, but the Colombian didn't make the required contact with a left-footed shot that was rather easily turned away by Amrinder.
Chennaiyin were then given a lifeline as Arnab Mondal was controversially penalized for handling the ball in his own area. Chaos ensued as Antonio Habas charged at the officials and the entire Kolkata bench was agitated. But Elano kept his cool amidst all that, and calmly tucked the penalty away, sending Amrinder the wrong way.
Chennaiyin were charged up and Mendoza won the ball straight from the kickoff and that led to a shot from substitute Balwant Singh which seemed to strike Rino Anto's arm. That proved to be the last act of an enthralling game, that the defending champions would feel lucky to come away with three points from.
