Delhi Dynamos FC began 2019 with a 2-0 win over Kerala Blasters FC at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in New Delhi on Thursday. The win was only Delhi’s second triumph of the season. Their maiden victory of Hero Indian Super League (Hero ISL) 2018-19 came in their last match before the winter break against FC Pune City. For Kerala, the loss extended their winless run to 13 matches.

The result means the two teams switch positions in the points table, with Delhi moving up to eighth and Kerala dropping down to ninth.

  • Gianni Zuiverloon scored from a corner on the 29th minute to put Delhi in the lead.
  • Nemanja Lakic-Pesic came close to scoring an equaliser in the second-half, but his header rattled the crossbar.
  • Rene Mihelic scored from the penalty spot late in the second-half to seal the win.
  • Lalruatthara was shown the red card for his involvement in the penalty incident.

Delhi head coach Josep Gombau decided to hand a start to new signing Ulises Davila, with the Mexican taking up the role of an advanced playmaker.

The first 20 minutes of the match saw the action largely restricted to the midfield with few notable chances on either end. Shubham Sarangi did force Kerala goalkeeper Dheeraj Singh to make a save on the 21st minute with a long-range shot, but the effort lacked the venom to worry the young custodian too much.

The match started to open up as the match progressed and it was the home team who were asking the right questions. Lallianzuala Chhangte, who has been Delhi's standout player this season, looked lively down the left flank and almost set up Davila for the opening goal of the match. Chhangte played in a delightful cross for the new recruit inside the Kerala box. Davila managed to get a foot to it at full stretch, but failed to get the connection it needed.

Delhi were knocking at the door and made their forward forays count just minutes later. Gianni Zuiverloon was left unmarked in the Kerala box during a corner and the Dutch defender capitalised on it, putting away Rene Mihelic's set-piece delivery. Mihelic could have doubled the Lions' lead just seconds later when Nandhakumar Sekar found him with a neat cut-back. The Slovenian, however, rushed his shot and skied it.

Kerala were the second-best team in the contest but could have equalised seconds before the half-time whistle. The ball fell kindly to Sandesh Jhingan inside the Delhi box, but Narayan Das flew in to block the Kerala captain's shot. There were appeals for a hand ball, but the referee wasn't interested. The half ended with the home team one goal to the good.

Kerala did start the second-half brightly and almost scored minutes after the restart. Slavisa Stojanovic's free kick was flicked goalward expertly by Nemanja Lakic-Pesic. Delhi goalkeeper Francisco Dorronsoro was beaten but the header came off the crossbar, letting the hosts off the hook.

The away team looked the more dangerous of the two sides in the first 20 minutes after the break but Delhi wrestled back control of the match after the 65-minute mark. Both teams kept creating half-chances but neither goalkeeper was seriously tested.

With time running out, Kerala’s Lalruatthara tried his luck from distance and forced an acrobatic save from Dorronsoro. Almost seconds later, Lalruatthara was involved in another incident on the other end of the pitch. Chhangte had a free run on goal and the Kerala defender tried his best to get back to put in a tackle. His intervention, however, was mistimed as he ended up bringing down Chhangte inside the box. The referee pointed towards the spot and showed Lalruatthara a red card.

Rene Mihelic promptly stepped up to dispatch the spot kick and secured the victory.

HERO OF THE MATCH – Lallianzuala Chhangte

Lallianzuala Chhangte was a livewire for Delhi down the left wing throughout the match and topped off his performance by winning his team a late penalty. He is the Hero of the Match.

CLUB AWARDS

Club Award – Delhi Dynamos FC

Swift Limitless Player of the Match – Gianni Zuiverloon

DHL Winning Pass of the Match – Rene Mihelic

ISL Emerging Player of the Match – Nandhakumar Sekar

Hero of the Match – Lallianzuala Chhangte

WHAT’S NEXT?

Delhi will host FC Goa on February 4, while Kerala’s next engagement in the Hero ISL will be an away match against Bengaluru FC on February 6.

Watch the match highlights here

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Related tags:

Kerala Blasters FC 2018-2019Match Report