Hero Indian Super League (Hero ISL) 2020-21’s Gameweek 16 saw all five matches produce outright results. NorthEast United FC continued their winning spree when they handed leaders Mumbai City FC their second defeat of the season. ATK Mohun Bagan then beat Kerala Blasters FC and reduced the gap on the Islanders on the points table. Hyderabad FC ended their run of draws with a win over Chennaiyin FC while Jamshedpur FC held on to a narrow lead to secure the three points against Odisha FC. Then in the last match of the gameweek, Bengaluru FC triumphed over SC East Bengal. Here, we look at the highlights from the gameweek gone by.

Giant-killers NorthEast United notch up third straight win

NorthEast United were the surprise package in Gameweek 16 as they secured an important 2-1 victory over Mumbai City and in the process ended their 12-match unbeaten run. A brace scored by Deshorn Brown in the first nine minutes of the game helped the Highlanders do the double over the Islanders. Brown’s second goal proved the winner as Adam le Fondre pulled one back for Sergio Lobera’s men. This was their third straight win under interim head coach Khalid Jamil after beating Jamshedpur FC and ATK Mohun Bagan in their previous two matches.   

ATK Mohun Bagan come back from two goals down

Second-placed ATK Mohun Bagan took full advantage of table-toppers Mumbai City’s slip-up with a hard-fought victory over Kerala Blasters. The Blasters were in command for the first 60 minutes of the game after Gary Hooper scored a wonder goal before Costa Nhamoinesu doubled his side’s lead. A defeat seemed imminent for the Mariners but a goal from ATK Mohun Bagan debutant Marcelo Pereira lifted the team’s spirits. Then Roy Krishna scored twice to secure the three points for his team. This victory reduced the points difference between the top two teams to just three points.

Hyderabad FC and Jamshedpur FC secure crucial points in fight for top four

Hyderabad FC faced off against Chennaiyin FC and scored twice to beat the Marina Machans in the second match of Gameweek 16. Fran Sandaza scored his second goal in as many games to give his side the lead in the first half before Joel Chianese added a second goal late on. The win moved Hyderabad up to third on the league table.

Meanwhile, Jamshedpur FC registered a 1-0 win over bottom-placed Odisha FC, with Mohammad Mobashir opening his tally in the Hero ISL. His cross for Nerijus Valskis from outside the box was misjudged by both the striker and the Odisha goalkeeper and helped Jamshedpur end their winless run of five matches.

Bengaluru taste victory after a long time

After an eight-match winless run, Bengaluru FC at last tasted victory against SC East Bengal following a 2-0 victory in the last encounter of the gameweek. Their last victory in Hero ISL 2020-21 had come on December 17 which tells you the kind of turbulent period the former champions have had since then. Cleiton Silva scored the opener for the Blues before SC East Bengal custodian Debjit Majumder scored an own goal to help double the lead for Naushad Moosa’s men.