Jamshedpur FC vs Bengaluru FC: Who won yesterday's match?
Jamshedpur FC finished their season on a winning note with a 3-2 result against Bengaluru FC in the 106th match of the 2020-21 Indian Super League (ISL). Jamshedpur FC held on to the lead after the Blues came up with a couple of goals in the second half of the game.
The Red Miners looked menacing from the word go with the duo of Laldinliana Renthlei and Seiminlen Doungel targeting the pair of Wungngayam Muirang and Ajith Kumar.
Isaac Vanmalsawma also produced a cross from the left flank soon after the start, but David Grande headed it straight to Lalthuammawia Ralte. Bengaluru FC then got a free-kick just outside the box. However, Sunil Chhetri’s effort didn’t dip in time to test TP Rehenesh.
Doungel and Farukh Choudhary also had chances, but the former’s shot was too weak to cause any issue for Ralte. At the other end, Rehenesh was forced into a save after Udanta Singh received a square pass from Chhetri and struck the ball decently.
Thereafter, it was all Jamshedpur FC as they took the lead in the 16th minute. Aitor Monroy delivered a superb free-kick to the far post and Stephen Eze headed it past Ralte, who was caught off-guard completely.
The Blues’ star player Chhetri went for a long shot but he skied it way over the target. After the cooling break, Jamshedpur FC doubled their lead through a neat finish from Doungel. The winger received a pass from Farukh and got past Ajith before finding the back of the net.
The scoreline became worse for Bengaluru FC as they conceded another goal in the first half. Monroy came up with another inviting free-kick and David Grande nodded the ball past a hapless Ralte. With just a minute left in the clock for half-time, Xisco Hernandez got a set-piece outside the box only to see his fierce strike denied by Rehenesh.
As a reaction to the poor defensive performance, Bengaluru FC's interim manager Naushad Moosa brought in Erik Paartalu and Fran Gonzalez. The Blues then looked far better in the second half. They also moved forward well with Chhetri finding Suresh Singh Wanjam, who struck the ball wide of the target. Wangjam received another cross from Harmanjot Khabra, but the youngster failed to test Rehenesh again.
Bengaluru FC eventually got one back as Fran Gonzalez registered his first goal of the season. It was a long throw-in from Parag Shrivas that saw Fran head the ball past Rehenesh.
The scoreline quickly became 2-3 when Chhetri scored his 100th goal in Bengaluru FC colors. He found the back of the net with a cracking header after Khabra produced a delicious cross into the middle.
Bengaluru FC came close to an equalizer when Chhetri headed the ball to Farukh Choudhary, who was standing on the line. Choudhary messed up his clearance but Jamshedpur FC got away due to a foul from Pratik Chaudhari.
In the dying moments of the game, Rehenesh had to push away a Chhetri header to help Jamshedpur close out the 3-2 victory.
Who was the Hero of the Match?
Jamshedpur FC’s Aitor Monroy bagged the ‘Hero of the Match’ award for providing a couple of assists with his superb set-piece delivery. The Red Miners have often struggled without the experienced Spaniard and he proved to be the biggest problem for Bengaluru FC on the night.
Apart from picking out his teammates during free-kicks and corner-kicks, Monroy kept the midfield ticking with neat passes. He was also all over the pitch with a number of long balls and crosses from either flank.