Just as the Indira Gandhi Stadium readied itself for the football frenzy, Guwahatians lapped up every bit of this rare occasion to line-up well; ahead of time and fill the stadium to choc-a-block capacity. The NorthEast United FC beat Kerala Blasters FC 1-0 in the second match of the tourney on Monday.
The local lads in white were all set to lock horns with the orange and purple striped-Kerala Blasters, with the audience anticipating am electrifying clash. Spanish defender Joan Capdevila, skipper of the NorthEast United side and Nigerian midfielder Penn Ikechukwu Orji, leading the Kerala side battled for the toss, which was eventually won by the local side, who allowed the visitors to start first.
The Kerala side looked pretty much in control of things, keeping the ball to themselves most of the time, while the NorthEast youngsters were a little short of breath running around in vain. The 10th minute saw English import James Keene do the honours, sans the desired results. In the 16th minute, Kerala trio Jamie McAllister, Stephen Pearson and Iain Hume did manage to threaten the NorthEast goalie, but there was no damage done. The same happened again, this time to Penn Ikechukwu Orji in the 21st minute.
The 23rd minute saw some stiff competition for the ball, with NorthEast’s Robin Gurung’s excellent tackle preventing C S Sabeeth from an attempt to open the Kerala account. There was another heart-in-the-mouth moment for the local fans in the 27th minute, when Sabeeth stormed into action again, coming threateningly close to scoring, but NorthEast’s efficient goalie Alexandros Tzorvas’ stunning save turned it around.  Â
The 33rd minute saw a sudden onslaught by the NorthEast players, when Durga Boro, David James and Zohmingliana Ralte just about scored one for their side, had it not been way too wide. Post the first yellow card awarded in the match, things were getting slightly dull, when Spaniard Koke scored the first goal of the match for the local side in the 45th minute, much to the shrill, high-decibel-ed joy of the jampacked stadium. At half-time, NorthEast United FC was leading 1-0.
The second half began with a few more forays by the Kerala side ending up in the flag, much to the frustration of the visitors. The much-hyped Michael Chopra was brought in as a substitution for Stephen Pearson in the 64th minute. Other than that, the second half remained relatively action-less, with more fouls compared to legitimate attacks. The second half yielding no goal, it was the Guwahati side that won the encounter 1-0.
The next match is between Delhi Dynamos FC and FC Pune City on Tuesday.
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