The Hero Indian Super League (Hero ISL) 2019-20 returned to action after the international break and it’s safe to say that fans weren’t disappointed with what they saw. Feisty derbies, injury time drama and unbeaten runs getting broken were just a few of the things that were in store in Gameweek 5 of Hero ISL 2019-20.

Here are the key highlights from Gameweek 5.

Bengaluru back in familiar territory, enter top four

After three draws at the start of their season, defending champions Bengaluru FC seem to be hitting top gear and now find themselves where they are expected to be – top four in the standings. Like their first victory of the season against Chennaiyin, their second win in Hero ISL 2019-20’s first game after the international break also came against a southern rival in Kerala Blasters. That said, the nature of their wins against Chennaiyin and Kerala were very different. The clash against Kerala, in fact, was an extremely tight affair and was decided by a Sunil Chhetri strike in the 55th minute. Even though Kerala gave it their all by playing some good football and pushed Bengaluru to the limit for the entire 90 minutes, it wasn’t enough to deny the Blues their fourth win against Kerala in five meetings. 

Chennaiyin’s jinx broken after Injury time madness

After a 0-0 draw between Odisha FC and ATK the previous night, it looked like Chennaiyin FC’s clash with Hyderabad FC was heading in the same direction. Despite dominating, creating a host of chances and hitting the woodwork twice, the Marina Machans just couldn’t find the back of the net. That all changed in the second minute of injury time when substitute Andre Schembri came off the bench to score what he must have thought was the winner. But little did he know at the time that Hyderabad would strike back through a Matthew Kilgallon header just two minutes later. Chennaiyin, however, showed great character to lift themselves and go up the other end to score the winner through Nerijus Valskis with virtually the last kick in what was one of the most exhilarating climaxes to a Hero ISL game. Both the victory – their first of the season - and the goals – ending a goal drought which lasted for almost 800 minutes – will come as a massive boost for both the team and the fans.

Goa suffer first defeat of the season

The Gaurs succumbed to their first loss of the season against a well-drilled Jamshedpur FC side. Antonio Iriondo’s men took the lead through star striker Sergio Castel – who has set the league ablaze this season – and defended in numbers to deny Goa a goal, which isn’t something you see very often. Goa had chances but lacked their usual ruthlessness in front of goal with Ferran Corominas out injured. What made matters worse for the Gaurs was the sending off of Ahmed Jahouh. The Moroccan midfielder was shown a second yellow in the 72nd minute and now joins Hugo Boumous and Seiminlen Doungel in Goa’s list of players serving suspensions.

Highlanders keep unbeaten run intact despite Mumbai siege

While Goa’s streak was broken, NorthEast United FC managed to cling on to their unbeaten record in Hero ISL 2019-20 despite being put under pressure by Mumbai City FC on Wednesday. The Highlanders took the lead through a Panagiotis Triadis stunner but was pegged back by an Amine Chermiti brace. Asamoah Gyan, however, brought back parity late in the first-half. The Islanders dominated possession in the second-half but Robert Jarni’s men held on at home to keep the losses column under their name blank.