Punjab spsecures first win; CFC snarls at ref’s calls

NEW DELHI: Punjab FC ended a 10-match-long wait for its maiden Indian Super League (ISL) win by defeating Chennaiyin FC at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in New Delhi by 1-0 tonight.

The ISL debutants had come touchingly close to crossing the finishing line numerous times in the past, but its moment of reckoning finally arrived on a chilly night in front of its home fans at the national capital. Staikos Vergetis had one man to thank for this feat, and that is his 26-year-old French attacking midfielder Madih Talal.

Talal was causing trouble for the Marina Machans throughout the game, regularly breaking into its defence from different areas and taking shots at goalkeeper Debjit Majumder. However, Owen Coyle & Co. could have avoided this loss had Connor Shields converted a fairly straightforward opportunity presented to him via close range with a squared up pass by Jordan Murray in the 14th minute.

The Scottish striker, goalless in Chennaiyin FC’s last six games, missed the target, and Talal made the visitors pay for it with a display of his creative genius throughout thereafter in the game.

His efforts weren’t going to end up redundant though, as the Chennaiyin FC defence began keeping close tabs on the midfielder. That drew them away from other Punjab FC players, opening up yards of space for their frontline to make use of. Talal finally struck, and it was a move that oozed all class, in the 56th minute of the game.

He sprinted into the Chennaiyin FC box, again from the right flank, and pulled the plug on his shot with such fierce power that Majumder was beaten on the near post, bringing the entire stadium to its feet. Vergetis breathed a sigh of relief on the touchline, and his team, bolstered by the introduction of workhorses like Krishnananda Singh, and Brandon Vanlalremdika, amongst others covered each blade of the grass until the final whistle blew to hold tight to its lead.