I-League: Gokulam Kerala FC vs Mohammedan SC, Highlights: Defending champions begin campaign with a victory

In
the
Hero
I-League
opener
at
the
Payyanad
Stadium
in
Manjeri,
the
home
side
made
the
perfect
start,
beating
Mohammedan
SC
by
a
solitary
goal
to
pick
up
all
three
points.

Last
season,
Gokulam
defeated
Mohammedan
in
the
concluding
and
deciding
encounter
to
bag
their
second
straight
title.

Mohammedan
started
the
game
on
a
high
tempo,
with
several
new
signings
like
Nuriddin
Davronov,
Abhishek
Ambekar
and
Abiola
Dauda
in
their
starting
XI.
Soon,
Gokulam
Kerala
also
grew
into
the
game
and
it
became
an
end-to-end
affair.
In
the
11th
minute,
Gokulam’s
Farshad
Noor
and
Nuriddin
Davronov
of
Mohammedan
were
booked
by
the
referee
after
an
argument.

The
first
half
did
not
see
many
clear
opportunities
for
either
side.
Aminou
Bouba
went
close
for
Gokulam
in
the
35th
minute
but
his
free-kick
went
just
over
the
bar.

Gokulam
Kerala
stepped
up
their
game
and
began
the
second
half
with
more
urgency.
Rahul
Raju
and
Christy
Davis
of
the
home
and
away
teams,
respectively,
received
yellow
cards
at
the
start
of
the
second
half.

The
Malabarians
then
broke
the
deadlock
in
the
57th
minute.
New
forward
signing
Auguste
Somlaga
played
a
quick
give-and-go
with
midfielder
Farshad
Noor
before
driving
a
low
shot
from
outside
the
box.
His
effort
slipped
through
the
hands
of
Mohammedan
keeper
Zothanmawia
and
the
ball
crossed
the
goal-line.

After
going
into
arrears,
Mohammedan
Coach
Andrey
Chernyshov
made
a
tactical
change
as
he
brought
on
the
midfielder
Faslu
Rahman
for
striker
Dauda
in
the
62nd
minute.
The
Black
and
White
Brigade
had
a
decent
chance
to
equalize
in
the
64th
minute
as
Vanlalzuidika
raided
the
Gokulam
penalty
area
but
the
attack
didn’t
amount
to
anything.
On
the
other
side,
Farshad
Noor
entered
the
Mohammedan
box
after
some
great
dribbling
but
his
effort
narrowly
missed
the
target.

Midway
through
the
second
half,
the
game
turned
into
a
midfield
tussle.
Mohammedan
seemed
like
running
out
of
ideas
and
failed
to
pose
any
real
threat
to
the
Gokulam
defence.
In
the
83rd
minute,
their
skipper
SK
Faiaz
received
a
good
chance
in
the
Gokulam
box
but
his
shot
went
straight
to
the
Gokulam
goalkeeper
Shibinraj
Kunniyil,
who
dealt
with
it
easily.

The
fans
attended
the
first
I-League
match
in
over
two
years
and
it
was
great
to
see
them
back
in
the
stands.
The
Malabarians
clearly
had
an
edge
in
the
game
and
received
the
backing
of
the
vociferous
crowd
throughout
the
match.

Gokulam
Kerala
will
now
face
Aizawl
FC
in
an
away
fixture
on
November
18
at
the
Rajiv
Gandhi
Stadium,
while
Mohammedan
SC
travel
to
play
RoundGlass
Punjab
FC
on
November
20
in
Panchkula.

Source:
I
League

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