I-LEAGUE Media Team
NEW DELHI: Gameweek 5 of the Hero I-League will remain a memorable one for the football fans in India and more importantly, the fans residing in the western part of the country.
It was homecoming for Mumbai FC as they returned to the Cooperage Stadium following five long years. The last I-League game was played in the stadium in May 2010, and the supporters returned with pomp to witness their first game of the Hero I-League this season in the heart of the city, against Sporting Clube de Goa on Sunday afternoon.
Both teams played out a goalless draw, but the more important moment was that the renovated Cooperage Stadium was up and running again.
Sporting Goa handed debuts to Portuguese defender Miguel Garcia, highly-rated Indian defender Sandesh Jhingan, as well as midfielder Brandon Fernandes. While Jhingan stayed rock solid in the defence, with a superlative man-marking of Brazilian forward Josimar, Brandon had to be substituted in the 23rd minute of play, after the youngster got a knock during play.
This gameweek will remain more than memorable for Salgaocar FC, as the Greens from Goa provided an impressive performance to record a 3-1 victory against Kolkata giants Kingfisher East Bengal, at the Fatorda Stadium.
Douhou Pierre and Brian Mascarenhas provided the goals for Derrick Pereira’s side, while Scottish striker Darryl Duffy also returned to the goalscoring chart. The only consolation for East Bengal was provided by Dudu Omagbemi.
Royal Wahingdoh, currently second in the table came from behind to hold Dempo 1-1 in their second home match in Shillong. It is interesting to note that the former Second Division League Champions’ home record this season has been inferior to their away performance.
While they recorded three out of three away wins, Santosh Kashyap’s side failed to record any win in their home games.
Nadong Bhutia scored the equaliser for the hosts, cancelling out Germanpreet Singh’s opener for Dempo.
Bengaluru FC got back their form following their big win against Wahingdoh in the previous Gameweek. Shillong lad Eugeneson Lyngdoh provided a screamer of a goal from outside the box in the second half to help the Blues record their second win of the season. This time against debutantes Bharat FC at the Kanteerava in the weekend.
While Ashley Westwood’s side moved to the sixth spot in the league, Stuart Watkiss’ side remained tenth from three games – without a win.
League leaders Pune FC suffered a loss against McDowell Mohun Bagan in Kolkata in their Round 5 match, as the Red Lizards failed to continue their scoring form. Pritam Kotal scored the solitary goal in the match for the hosts in the second half, and Karim Bencherifa’s side tried but failed to either score the equaliser or find the winner on the day.
Top 3 Teams (in order of Ranking):
Pune FC – 10 points; Goal difference: +5
Royal Wahingdoh FC – 10 points; Goal difference: -1
Salgaocar FC – 8 points
Top Goalscorer:
Thongkhosiem Haokip (PFC) – 4 goals
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