Jamshedpur FC went up against the eighth-placed NorthEast United. The Red Miners suffered a crushing defeat to FC Goa in their last match and needed to buckle up their form. NorthEast had managed to clinch a draw in their match against Bengaluru FC. This also marked a debut for new signing Deshorn Brown in the whites. The striker took the pitch with onus and made his first match memorable.
Team Talk
Owen Coyle decided to shake up his formation to 4-4-1-1 but it could not prevent his third consecutive loss coming into 2021. Valskis and David Grande took the duty to attack with four in midfield, namely, Aniket Jadhav, Monroy, Kiyam, and Jackichand Singh. The defence line was the same with Stephen Eze and Peter as central defenders. Lallawmawma and Narender Gahlot covered the flanks. Rehenesh T.P. was the shot-stopper for Jamshedpur FC today who tried his best to keep a clean sheet but conceded twice.
After the sacking of Gerard Nus, Khalil Jamil took over as the interim manager and brought about some changes in the team. NorthEast United shifted from 4-4-2 formation to 4-3-3 which looks great on the attacking stance. Also, they switched their possession-based game approached towards a clinical counter-attacking style. There were three changes for the side with Subhashish Roy Chowdhury, Idrissa Sylla, and Mashoor Shereef stepping in for Gurmeet Singh, Rochharzela, and Benjamin Lambot respectively.
NorthEast United went for a change and made the right decision
Both sides initiated goal threatening attacks in the first 20 minutes as Valskis nearly scored for Jamshedpur from a sweet lob ball near the box. Gallego had an opportunity to curl into the top corner from a set-piece but nearly missed the frame of the goal. In the 32nd minute, V.P. Suhair delivered a beautiful cross from the right flank to draw an acrobatic attempt from Machado. Rehenesh managed to tip the ball for a corner but the danger remained looming.
Ashutosh Mehta hit converted a superb header for the goal and help his side take the lead of the match in the 35th minute. Deshorn Brown took the pitch for Sylla and aimed a shot towards the goal with his first touch but it lacked precision. However, it did not take long for the Jamaican to score his first goal as he netted the second goal of the match in the 61st minute. Peter Hartley scored one back for the consolation during the dying moments of the game. This win sends NorthEast United as high as the fifth position in the Indian Super League table but the rest of the teams have a match in hand.
First win for NorthEast United against Jamshedpur FC
It is the first win for the NorthEast against Jamshedpur FC as they have never won head-to-head. Jamshedpur FC continues their sorry state with their third consecutive loss in the league. Both teams had almost the same time on the ball, but the away team made the most of the situation with their counter attacks. The Red Miners tried lodging 11 shots towards the opponent’s goal with only four being on the target. Lack of shot accuracy and chance creation cost Jamshedour the match, whereas NorthEast United had the stability even after the sacking of their head coach.
