The pre-quarter final stage of the inaugural Hero Super Cup ended on Friday, with Bengaluru FC, FC Goa and Jamshedpur FC entering the next round of knockout fixtures. All the eight matches played at the Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar went down to the wire with two of them getting decided through penalties. With tougher encounters and more confident teams to face in the quarter-finals, here we take a look at how the eight Hero Indian Super League (ISL) teams fared in the first stage of the tournament.

Chennaiyin FC

The current title-holders bowed out of the competition after going down 3-5 on penalties against an inspired Aizawl FC side. After 120 minutes of play, the score remained tied at 2-2 before Aizawl’s composure won them the shootout. The Marina Machans, however, looked a shade of their former self, with fatigue possibly being one of the reasons for the same.

Bengaluru FC

Being arguably the best team through the season and narrowly losing out on the 2017-18 Hero ISL title, the Blues entered the Hero Super Cup as one of the favourites to win. However, they survived a big scare against Gokulam Kerala FC. Miku’s equaliser and Udanta Singh’s injury-time winner saved them the blushes and saw them through with a 2-1 win.

Jamshedpur FC

Though Jamshedpur boasted of one of the best defensive units in the currently-concluded season, their attack again failed to fire against Hero I-League 2017-18 champions Minerva Punjab FC. After 120 minutes of intense play ended goalless, the match went into the penalties which Jamshedpur won 5-4 to enter the next round.

FC Goa

The Gaurs attacking prowess had been the talking point throughout the 2017-18 season and they again managed to show their crisp form when they took on ATK in the only all-Hero ISL encounter of the pre-quarter final stage. Ferran Corominas, Hugo Boumous and Brandon Fernandes combined to give them a 3-1 win over the Kolkata-outfit.

ATK

Disappointment continued for the two-time Hero ISL champions as they succumbed to a 1-3 defeat to Goa. Their defence failed to thwart the Gaurs charge, while only Robbie Keane, their caretaker coach and captain, managed to find the back of the net. With their worst Hero ISL season coming to an end, ATK can only hope for a change in fortunes next season.

FC Pune City

At one stage, the Stallions looked as if they would cruise into the quarter-finals after Jonatan Lucca and Marcelinho’s brilliant strikes game them a two-goal cushion against Shillong Lajong FC. But a brilliant comeback from the young Lajong unit saw them scoring three past Pune’s experienced defence to trump them 3-2 and enter the next round.

Mumbai City FC

The Islanders also couldn’t add a silverware to their name at the end of the 2017-18 season, as they went down fighting against Hero I-League giants East Bengal. Achille Emana’s brilliant free-kick opened proceedings for Mumbai, but they failed to restrict East Bengal’s fightback, who scored two past them to grab a 2-1 win and the quarter-final berth.

Kerala Blasters FC

A 12-minute rampage from NEROCA FC took the steam off Kerala Blasters in the last pre-quarter final of the tournament, even though they were the better team in the majority of the match. Two goals from Victor Pulga and Prasanth Karuthadathkuni had given them a comfortable lead before NEROCA came back to stun David James’ men and win 3-2.