Hero Indian Super League (ISL) 2017-18 ‘s last match week before the Christmas break, concluded on Saturday. The week witnessed plenty of thrills, spills and emotions that ensured that the season was slowly churning out to be a blockbuster. Bengaluru FC suddenly found the going tough after suffering consecutive home setbacks, while spoils were shared in the second southern derby of the season.

Here are the results of the week gone by, and some of the key talking points.

Match 28: NorthEast United FC 0 – 2 Mumbai City FC (Match Report)

Match 29: Bengaluru FC 0 – 1 Jamshedpur FC (Match Report)

Match 30: Chennaiyin FC 1 – 1 Kerala Blasters FC (Match Report)

Match 31: FC Goa 0 - 2 FC Pune City (Match Report)

Match 32: ATK 1 - 0 Delhi Dynamos FC (Match Report)

Jamshedpur prevail in the first clash of the debutants: Bengaluru FC and Jamshedpur FC squared off in their first ever encounter at the Sree Kanteerava Stadium in Bengaluru, where Trindade Goncalves’ late penalty ensured that the visitors took home maximum points. This was Bengaluru’s second successive defeat at home and third overall, as they dropped valuable points.

Season’s second southern derby finds no winner: The fierce rivalry between Chennaiyin FC and neighbouring Kerala Blasters FC was rekindled when the two faced off at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Chennai, to play out a thriller. Rene Mihelic’s successful penalty a minute from time seemed to have secured a win for the hosts, before Kerala’s local boy CK Vineeth struck with virtually the last attack of the game to rescue a point for the Blasters.

A couple of unwanted firsts for Goa: FC Goa fell to a 2-0 defeat when their wastefulness in front of goal was taken advantage of by an alert FC Pune City. Emiliano Alfaro and Jonatan Lucca’s dual strikes not only inflicted the first home defeat of the season on the Gaurs, but the result also meant that they were unable to net the ball for the first time in the ongoing campaign.

ATK notch up first home win: Two-time champions ATK finally got their first win at the Vivekananda Yuba Bharati Krirangan this season, when Robbie Keane scored the only goal in their 1 – 0 win over Delhi Dynamos FC. ATK climbed to the seventh position on the table as they won back-to-back fixtures, while the Lions lost their fifth game on the trot

Chennai become the new table toppers: For the first time this season, Chennaiyin FC ended the match week at the top of the league table with 13 points from 7 games, leaving behind FC Goa, Bengaluru FC and FC Pune City, who are all tied at 12 points apiece. Though they played out a draw against Kerala, the top position is sure to infuse their squad with greater confidence.

The last match week of 2017 kicks off on 28^th December at the JRD Tata Sports Complex in Jamshedpur, where Chennaiyin FC pay a visit to Jamshedpur FC. The year shall end with a flair of southern rivalry as Kerala Blasters FC welcome home Bengaluru FC on 31st December, in what is sure to become a battle of bragging rights between two of the most passionate fan bases in the country.