Welcome to another installment of our daily Indian football news. In this section, you will find all the news pertaining to Indian football that happened on the given day.
In case you missed out on yesterday’s edition, you can check it out here.
NEROCA FC pip Churchill Brothers in an enthralling encounter
NEROCA FC pipped Churchill Brothers 2-1 at the Khuman Lampak stadium in Imphal in the 2018-19 Hero I-League. This win takes the Manipuri side to the third position in the points table with 14 points from 8 matches. Churchill Brothers, meanwhile, slip to the fourth place with 13 points from 8 matches.
Katsumi Yusa drew first blood for NEROCA at the 13th second itself after connecting Aryn Williams’ cross. Churchill Brothers restored the parity at the 37th minute when Khalid Aucho nodded in Dawda ‘s cross.
The game was staring at another stalemate before Katsumi Yusa broke the deadlock at the 87th minute. It was again Arys Williams who provided the curling cross that Katsumi Yusa headed in.
NEROCA will next take on the defending champions Minerva Punjab on 23rd December. Churchill Brothers, on the other hand, will lock horns with East Bengal on 20th December.
Katsumi Yusa scores the quickest goal in the I-League/NFL history
Katsumi Yusa etched his name into the history books when he put the ball past the Churchill Brothers’ net in the 13th second. The Japanese scored the quickest goal in the I-League/NFL history, breaking James Moga’s previous record for Pune FC.
Churchill Brothers left-back Nalappan Mohanraj’s untimely clearance was cut out by Felix Chidi, who passed it towards Malemngamba Meitei on the left wing. Aryn Williams collected his pass before curling it towards Katsumi Yusa. The Japanese timed his acrobatic header perfectly to send the home fans in euphoria.
Shankar Sampingiraj and Nicholas Fernandes had come close to break the South Sudanese’s record earlier. But, they failed via a second and two respectively. The record is now in the name of Katsumi Yusa and, it is expected to stay for a longer time.
Real Kashmir FC and Gokulam Kerala share the spoils
Real Kashmir FC and Gokulam Kerala played out an entertaining 1-1 draw at the EMS Stadium in Kozhikode. This draw takes the Srinagar-based side to the second spot on the table, only three points behind the league-leaders Chennai City FC who also have a match in hand.
Gokulam Kerala, meanwhile, is sixth on the table with 10 points from 8 matches. Needless to say, it has hurt the title aspirations of the club immensely.
Pritam Singh scored an acrobatic goal at the 20th minute to give the home side the lead. The away side launched in long balls from the center of the park but, it proved to be futile. It was Surchandra Singh who equalized for the visitors as he rocketed the ball from an acute angle at the 69th minute.
Real Kashmir will next cross swords with Chennai City FC on 22nd December in a top of the table clash. Meanwhile, Gokulam Kerala will take on Indian Arrows a day prior.
Delhi Dynamos get their first 2018-19 Hero ISL win
Delhi Dynamos, finally, got their first win in the 2018-19 Hero ISL after staying winless for 11 consecutive matches. They triumphed over the defending champions Chennaiyin FC 3-1 at the Jawaharlal Nehru stadium in Chennai.
Daniel Lalhlimpuia drew first blood at the 16th minute after connecting Lallianzuala Chhangte’s cross. Chennaiyin FC restored the parity at the dying embers of the first half after Raphael Augusto wrote his name into the scoresheet by converting a penalty.
The visitors preserved the stalemate until the 78th minute when Bikramjit Singh scored for Delhi Dynamos after latching onto Lallianzuala Chhangte’s pass. Nandhakumar Sekar, too, found the back of the net after his first-time shot took a Chennaiyin FC player’s deflection.
The win takes Delhi Dynamos to the ninth position with 7 points from 12 matches, pipping Chennaiyin FC to the rock-bottom spot with 5 points from 12 matches.
That’s it for today. Don’t forget to catch the daily roundup of Indian football news only on Sportsindiashow.
