Jamshedpur FC rallied to a 4-1 victory against a struggling Chennaiyin FC side in Match 96 of the Indian Super League 2021-22 season at the Tilak Maidan Stadium in Vasco, Goa on Sunday.
The first half started out with an intense midfield battle initially, but as the minutes rolled down, Jamshedpur FC extended their grip over the game. However, they were struck by an unfortunate injury when Jitendra Singh had to be replaced in the 10th minute. Midfielder Mobashir Rahman was brought on to replace him.
JFC were unmoved by the forced change and drew first blood in the 23rd minute through Ritwik Das. Peter Hartley got to the end of a cross from Greg Stewart but Chennaiyin FC cleared it off the line. However, Das, the goalscorer in the last game, was the quickest to react and guided the rebound into the net.
After conceding early, CFC tried to up the ante, but the Red Miners maintained their shape in the middle of the park brilliantly. Minutes later, Jamshedpur forward Daniel Chima Chukwu found himself at the end of a glorious one-on-one opportunity but thumped it straight at the keeper.
In the 33rd minute, JFC doubled their lead through Boris Singh when Greg Stewart breached the Chennai defense with a darting run into the box and laid off the ball for the Indian youngster. Boris calmly tucked it home to intensify Chennaiyin FC's troubles.
However, the Chennai-based club's first-half misery wasn't over. With the Chennaiyin FC defense rattled, Eli Sabia found Daniel Chima Chukwu near the opposition box, unmarked.
The Nigerian forward quickly turned towards the Chennai goal and placed the ball into the bottom left corner from outside the box. The diving goalkeeper couldn't stop the ball from rolling into the net. Syed Sabir Pasha's men were 3-0 down going into half time.
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Jamshedpur FC crush Chennaiyin FC's top-four hopes
Coming out after the break, Jamshedpur FC carried on with similar intensity and almost immediately made Chennaiyin FC pay. Greg Stewart found the ball near the CFC box and the Scotsman, not pressed by defenders, lined up a shot,
However. the ball took a wicked deflection off Deepak Devrani and ended up in the back of the CFC net. The goal almost immediately killed the game.
Jamshedpur FC were happy to allow CFC all the possession in the center of the park but maintained a compact shape and quick pressing to win the ball in their own half.
In the 62nd minute, Chennaiyin FC pulled a goal back through Nerijus Valskis. Ariel Borysiuk attempted a long shot and TP Rehenesh parried it away but the ball fell kindly for Valskis, who thumped it home from close range.
However, the game was already over and JFC smartly ran down the clock and clinched the three points. The loss means Chennaiyin FC are mathematically out of the top-four race.
Meanwhile, Jamshedpur FC have jumped to second in the ISL points table with 31 points from 17 games, a point behind Hyderabad FC with a game in hand. They almost have one foot in the semi-finals now.