Jamshedpur FC and Odisha FC picked up their first points in Hero Indian Super League (Hero ISL) 2020-21 after a 2-2 draw at the Tilak Maidan Stadium on Sunday. Nerijus Valskis scored twice in the first half to give Jamshedpur a 2-0 lead. The second half was filled with plenty of drama as Jamshedpur shot-stopper TP Rehenesh was sent off for a hand-ball that denied a goal-scoring opportunity. Substitute Diego Mauricio scored for Odisha in the 77th minute after the red card and then netted the equaliser in injury time.

• Nerijus Valskis gave Jamshedpur FC the lead from the spot in the 12th minute.
• The Lithuanian striker doubled Jamshedpur’s advantage by capitalizing on a defensive lapse three minutes before the half hour mark.
• TP Rehenesh was sent off handling the ball outside his box and denying Odisha a goal-scoring chance in the second half.
• Substitute Diego Mauricio scored both of Odisha’s goal in the second period to earn a draw for his team.

Jamshedpur began the game on the front foot and had two early sighters of goal before Valskis headed a freekick off target. Shubham Sarangi let fly from distance in the 8th minute for Odisha, but his effort was fractions wide of the target.

The frantic start to the game continued and eventually led to Jamshedpur winning a penalty in the 11th minute. After the Odisha goalkeeper had made a save to deny Stephen Eze from scoring a header, Valskis reacted quickest to shoot the ball goalwards from the rebound.

His attempt, though, was met with the hand of Odisha defender Gaurav Bora and that resulted in the Bhubaneswar-club conceding a penalty, which Valskis buried into the bottom left corner to give Jamshedpur the lead after 12 minutes.

Jamshedpur doubled their lead in the 27th minute after a loose pass by Sarangi into his own box was capitalized on by Valskis, who produced a first-time finish with his left foot to make it 2-0 for Owen Coyle’s men.

Odisha’s talisman Marcelo Pereira then tried to beat the Jamshedpur goalkeeper from distance in the 40th minute and managed to keep his shot on target. However, he couldn’t quite generate enough power on his shot to beat the goalkeeper as Jamshedpur kept their 2-0 lead intact at the break.

Jamshedpur’s first chance of the second period saw Alexandre Lima put an effort from range wide of the target in the 52nd minute. Odisha almost made them pay for that miss moments later when Manuel Onwu was through on goal and had just the goalkeeper to beat. Fortunately for Jamshedpur, his attempt was wide of goal.

Onwu had another opportunity to score in the 59th minute and this time he tested the goalkeeper. After controlling a cross from the left with his weaker foot, Onwu produced a first-time shot with his right foot on the swivel to force the goalkeeper into a save.

Odisha had another chance from the resulting corner, but Jamshedpur custodian Rehenesh once again made the save by reacting quickly to prevent Nandhakumar Sekar from getting a proper connection on a loose ball inside the penalty area.

That save turned out to be one of the last bits of goalmouth action that Rehenesh was involved in. The 27-year-old goalkeeper ended up seeing a red card in the 74th minute after using his hand outside the penalty box to deny Odisha a clear goal-scoring chance.

Substitute Mauricio took the resulting freekick following Rehenesh’s dismissal and struck the post before he got another bite of the cherry from a goalmouth scramble and made no mistake with a convincing finish from close range to reduce deficit.

Odisha continued to pile the pressure on Jamshedpur and were eventually rewarded with an equaliser in second half injury time. Mauricio’s second goal was the best of the match as the Brazilian striker sorted his feet out on the edge of the box before unleashing a venomous shot that gave the goalkeeper no chance of making a save. Mauricio, in fact, had another attempt before the final whistle but could only find the side-netting on this occasion as both teams shared the spoils.

Hero of the Match – Diego Mauricio

Jamshedpur looked like they were heading for a win, but substitute Diego Mauricio had other ideas. Even though he was only on the pitch for 30 minutes, he netted both the goals for Odisha, including a stunning equaliser that could be a contender for goal of the season.

AWARDS

Club Award – Jamshedpur FC and Odisha FC

DHL Winning Pass of the Match – Alexandre Lima (Jamshedpur FC)

Watch the Match Highlights here: