Hello and welcome to the live coverage of the Indian Super League match between NorthEast United FC and Odisha FC that will kick off soon at the Indira Gandhi Athletic Stadium in Guwahati.
NorthEast United defeated Odisha FC in an thrilling mid-table clash. Follow highlights of NEUFC vs OFC ISL match here
Hello and welcome to the live coverage of the Indian Super League match between NorthEast United FC and Odisha FC that will kick off soon at the Indira Gandhi Athletic Stadium in Guwahati.
Match starts at 5:00pm IST.
The Highlanders and the Kalinga Warriors are tied on eight points from six matches each and are positioned sixth and eighth in the points table respectively. Both the sides have two wins, and the same number of losses and draws.
The Highlanders are coming on the back of a thumping 5-0 win against Jamshedpur FC, and the Kalinga Warriors enter the game after a hard-fought 1-1 draw at the home of Mumbai City FC.
The two teams have played 10 times against each other in the ISL.
NorthEast United:6
Odisha FC: 3
Draw: 1
The national anthem is done and we are ready to begin. NorthEast United are in red and black while Odisha FC are in their cream jersey.
1' HERE WE GO!!! There comes the opening whistle and it is Odisha who begin with the ball. The Kalinga Warriors will go from right to left and NorthEast United will go the other way to score.
3' As expected, the Highlanders begin on a high and are consistently entering the final third. Two good moves were made and the ball was put into the box but the shot could not come as Odisha defenders manage to clear the ball
7' First shot of the game and it is off target. Mohammed Bemammer of NorthEast United fires the ball from outside the box but it is too high and Amrinder Singh just watches it sail over his head.
12' NorthEast United FC Score!!!
What a stunning goal from Alaaeddine Ajaraie. He keeps doing it for NorthEast United. His eighth goal of the tournament and what a stunning finish. He finds the ball just outside the box. One touch to control the ball, the second to find the gap sideways to the right and shoots it into the goal towards the bottom right corner. NorthEast United take the lead.
17' The Highlanders continue to dominate. Néstor Albiach had just hit a shot that was too high and just a minute after that they create another chance. A beautiful cross for Parthib Gogoi to head the second goal but he misses.
28' Corner for NorthEast United. They continue to put the Odisha FC defence under pressure. Ajaraie takes the corner. An inswinging corner into the box towards the far end. Asheer Akhtar gets a header but it is just too weak to make an impact and Amrinder Singh collects the ball with ease.
35' Free kick for NorthEast United FC from an interesting spot. Jithin Madathil Subran has been fouled on the right wing just parallel to the box. Nestor Albiach takes the free kick and choses to go direct on the goal but smashes the side netting instead.
40' NorthEast United Score!!!
Ajaraie does it again. Poor defending from Odisha with a men out of position behind the backline and that ensures Ajaraie is not off side on the left edge of the box from where he just takes too touches to smash the ball past Amrinder Singh to get his second. Odisha have been poor and are lucky that they have conceded just twice this evening.
45+1' Yet again Ajaraie makes a brilliant run into the box where he tries finding Nestor Albiach but the ball is intercepted. Total domination by the Highlanders so far. Odisha are looking absolutely clueless tonight. Every now and then the Highlanders are entering the box and the Odisha defence has been kept on its toes throughout the match.
Meanwhile, three minutes added.
The first half ends and it has been one-way traffic for the first 45 minutes. NorthEast United are 2-0 up with Alaaeddine Ajaraie getting both goals. The Highlanders have been absolutely dominant in every metric and Odisha will really need to pull their game up to make a comeback. We will be right back.
Second half begins. NorthEast will now be attacking from right to left. Odisha FC will go the other way and they really need to do things differently because so far they have looked clueless.
51' Finally Odisha FC have a shot on target. An easy collection for Gurmeet Singh in the middle. Shot taken by Isak Vanlalruatfela from just outside the box from the but right in the hands of Gurmeet.
60' Odisha FC Score!!! It was coming. Odisha have been really really good in this half and they were going into the attacking third of the opponent consistently. That final finish was missing and here it comes from the right foot of Hugo Boumous who takes the matters in his own hands and scores from the left side of the six yard box from what looked like a difficult position to score.
64' Brilliant save from Gurmeet Singh. A high shot towards the right and he jumps at the perfect time to palm the ball over the goalpost. Table have completely turned after the break. Odisha FC now making attacks after attacks and NorthEast United's defence looks a bit disjointed at this moment.
72' Goal for NorthEast United!!!
Alaaeddine Ajaraie yet again shows his magic. Has already scored twice and this time comes up with the perfect assist to help Guillermo Fernández slot in the third goal for NorthEast. The crowd goes berserk and NorthEast can breathe easy now. This half was not going the way they wanted but they have scored against the run of play.
75' Gurmeet Singh makes another good save. Shot from from inside the six-yard box by Roy Krishna who had a difficult angle on the right side. But Krishna took a powerful shot on the near post and Gurmeet again pushes the ball away for a corner. The corner does not prove to be a tough thing for the Highlanders' defence.
83' Odisha FC Score!!!
Diego Mauricio finds the net on the free kick and it is game on now in Guwahati. Mauricio gets a free kick from a dangerous spot outside the box and he fires an absolute beauty of a shot, curling from outside the post into the goal. The gap remains just of one goal now. We are going in the final few minutes and expect a thrilling end.
90+1' Gurmeet singh stands tall for the Highlanders. His left hand has denied Odisha FC what could have been a certain equaliser. Odisha FC can not believe it. Hugo Boumous had slammed a brilliant shot from inside the six-yard box but Gurmeet manages to keep the ball out. Big save and it could seal the match here.
NorthEast United beat Odisha FC!
Back-to-back wins for NorthEast United in the tournament and the fans in Guwahati stadium will go home happy. They are absolutely delighted. They backed their team strongly and the Highlanders did not disappoint. For Odisha FC, they would think of a poor first half and the missed chances in the second.
A game of two halves definitely. First one dominated by NorthEast United and the second by Odisha FC. However, the Highlanders are the one who come out on top thanks to a brace and an assist from Alaeddine Ajaraie. He scored twice in the first half and then made way for the third goal in the second half. Odisha came back hard in the second half but always remained behind the match.
A good win for NorthEast United, their third of the tournament. They move up to the fifth sport, Odisha fall to ninth. We will take your leave.