Ortiz nets winner for Goa

  Jorge Ortiz produced a moment of magic eight minutes from time as FC Goa defeated Chennaiyin FC 1-0 in an Indian Super League 2021-22 fixture at the Athletic Stadium in Bambolim (Goa) on Saturday.

Spanish forward Ortiz came up with a golazo from outside the box to help Goa earn an all-important three points. Following the result, Goa moved to 12 points from 10 matches while Chennaiyin remains on 14 points from 10 fixtures this season.

Winter signing Nerijus Valskis was handed a start by head coach Bozidar Bandovic on his CFC re-debut, but couldn’t be the point of positive difference on the night. Goa enjoyed the lion’s share of possession in the opening period and had a couple of opportunities to break the deadlock through Ortiz.

Close to the 20-minute mark, Alberto Noguera saw Ortiz make a perfect run into the box and found his compatriot with a well-weighted pass. However, Chennaiyin goalkeeper Debjit Majumder came out off his line to avert the danger. With about six minutes to go for the interval, Glan Martins tried his luck from outside the box but Debjit managed to save. The loose ball, however, fell to Ortiz, who could not beat the CFC shotstopper from an acute angle. Chennaiyin was then denied a clear penalty despite Goa centre-back Anwar Ali handling the ball in the area.

At the stroke of half-time, Noguera and Ortiz combined forces once again, with the latter forcing a save from Debjit at the near post. The designated ‘home’ team ended the first half on a strong note, but did not have anything to show for at the break.

Early in the second half, Goa was unlucky not to get a spot-kick after Ortiz was pulled from behind inside the penalty box. About 10 minutes in, Goa skipper Edu Bedia rattled the far post directly from a corner as Chennaiyin breathed a huge sigh of relief.

CFC boss Bandovic rang in the changes as the match progressed, but it was Goa that snatched the winner via Ortiz. After the ball landed on his feet in a fortuitous way, the 29-year-old Ortiz danced through a few Chennaiyin defenders. The Goa forward saw Debjit off his line and picked his spot to perfection from outside the box.

Result: FC Goa 1 (J Ortiz 82) bt Chennaiyin FC 0