Three in a row for Chennaiyin

Nerijus Valskis (13’, 75’) struck a brace, catapulting to the top of the ‘Most Goals’ chart with 10 hits beyond the opposition goalkeepers. Andre Schembri (43’) and Lallianzuala Chhangte (87’) joined the party at the Marina Arena with a goal apiece. Sergio Castel (71’) was the lone bright spark in an otherwise forgettable night for Jamshedpur. 

CFC’s third victory on the trot put it just three points behind fourth-placed Odisha FC (21 points from 14 games) with a match in hand. JFC (16 points from 13 games), whose travelling trauma continues, dropped down to the seventh spot on the ISL table.  

Owen Coyle-managed Chennaiyin drew first blood in the 13th minute via Valskis. Jamshedpur midfielder Bikash Jairu misplaced a header and the resulting ball fell into the path of Schembri. The latter’s neat pass set up Valskis, who calmly beat the onrushing shotstopper Subrata Paul and found the bottom left corner.

A few minutes later, the host had a golden opportunity to put some clear daylight between itself and JFC. The versatile Edwin Sydney Vanspaul curled in a corner-kick into the far post, where an unmarked Schembri was stationed. Once Subrata failed to clear the immediate danger, the ball was begging to be put in but the Maltese made a hash of the chance.

Schembri was offered a second bite at the cherry three minutes from the half-time whistle. Brazilian Rafael Crivellaro came up with a well-weighted through ball to find the forward whose left-footed shot was off target. However, on the third time of asking, Schembri made no mistake.

In the 43rd minute, creative outlet Crivellaro delivered a teasing cross, which was turned in from close quarters by the former Malta captain. Jamshedpur did have its moments in the first half through Castel and Farukh Choudhary but the away side headed into the breather with a two-goal deficit.

In a bid to get back into the contest, JFC manager Antonio Iriondo threw in former Chennaiyin winger CK Vineeth in place of winter signing David Grande at the start of the second period. The visitor was on the front foot for a while and was rightly rewarded with a 71st minute goal. 

Just when CFC looked on course for a second successive clean sheet, Spanish striker Castel pulled one back for Jamshedpur after full-back Joyner Lourenco picked him at the near post. But, any hopes of a comeback were dashed immediately as Valskis, once again, punished the tourist for its dismal defending. 

In the 75th minute, midfielder Anirudh Thapa manufactured a defence-splitting pass for the Lithuanian, who netted his 10th goal of the season. Chennaiyin added more sheen to the scoreline three minutes from time, with wideman Chhangte converting a rebound off Subrata.The custodian had parried the initial effort from Dragos Firtulescu.