The 11th matchday of the Indian Super League got underway tonight, and the first match saw 7th-placed NorthEast United face Hyderabad FC, who were a spot above them in the table. The Highlanders were winless in five, so they desperately needed three points, while Hyderabad FC had rediscovered their mojo in that 4-1 success over Chennaiyin FC, so they wanted to build on that momentum. An important clash was set to ensue, and here’s what we made of it:

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Within three minutes, Joel Chianese beat three defenders as he got to the byline on the right, turned inside and poked the ball across to Aridane Santana, who turned it in from close range.

Took what four players out by dribbling from the wings till the 6 yard box and putting it on a plate, brilliant

— Raghu (@Raghunandhanan_) January 8, 2021 In the 13th minute, Federico Gallego whipped a free-kick towards Idrissa Syll, who had a free header about six yards away from goal, but he missed the target altogether. Two minutes later, Luís Machado beat his man and had a shooting opportunity from the edge of the box. His effort was going into the corner of the net, but Laxmikant Kattimani just managed to tip it onto the post and away for a corner. The keeper had to make another stop in the 29th minute when Idrissa Sylla’s shot from outside the box was threatening his net, so he got a hand to it and pushed it away for a corner. It was Hyderabad FC who scored next, though, as Akash Mishra turned the ball over high up the pitch when he blocked Benjamin Lambot’s attempted clearance. He nudged it towards Joel Chianese, who drove into the box past a couple of defenders and slotted home from close range. Comment from discussion gunnersonfire’s comment from discussion "Match Thread: NorthEast United FC vs Hyderabad | Indian Super League".

NorthEast United had a great chance to pull one back in the 45th minute when Halicharan Narzary nudged Ashutosh Mehta at the edge of the box, causing the referee to award a penalty. Federico Gallego stepped up, and he sent it down the middle to make it 2-1. https://twitter.com/AlwaysAnkur/status/1347555987570401280 Just before half-time, NorthEast United completed their comeback. Ashutosh Mehta headed Fanai Lalrempuia’s cross towards goal from inside the six-yard box, but his shot was saved by Laxmikant Kattimani. A great scrap ensued on the goal-line involving three NorthEast players and the keeper, and eventually, Benjamin Lambot bundled it home. https://twitter.com/AdityaNarjinar1/status/1347555989990510594 26 seconds into the second half, Ashutosh Mehta squared a ball across the box to Luís Machado, whose first-time effort just cleared the crossbar. Just before the hour-mark, Machado had a hit from the edge of the box and aimed it towards the top corner, but Laxmikant Kattimani kept it out. Hyderabad FC’s next big chance came in the 80th minute when Halicharan Narzary found Joel Chianese at the edge of the box for a free header with his cross, but the Australian forward missed wide. A minute later, Aridane Santana found Narzary free on the left of the box, but he only hit the side-netting with his powerful shot. The Nizams finally took the lead in the 85th minute, as Liston Colaco received the ball on the right, waltzed past three opponents as he entered the box and finally finished in style with his left foot.

Liston! #ISL #NEUHFC pic.twitter.com/I7cjx4kCqO

— Reddit r/IndianFootball (@rIndianFootball) January 8, 2021 In the last minute of stoppage-time, Liston Colaco was played through on goal by Aridane Santana, and he slotted home to make it 4-2, which was how the match ended.

pic.twitter.com/K7MNkUoNGk

— ……. (@_Nigh_King_) January 8, 2021

NORTHEAST UNITED

Key Talking Point

A five-game winless streak meant that NorthEast United’s strong start had come undone, but they still had time to bounce back and relaunch their push for the top-four. Things didn’t go to plan early on, though, as they conceded within three minutes following some pretty bad defending. One of the main culprits was Mashoor Shereef, a man making his second appearance of the season as he replaced Dylan Fox in the line-up. Benjamin Lambot wasn’t faultless either, as his poor clearance led to Hyderabad FC’s second goal. Things changed for the Highlanders thereafter, though, as they started to grow into the match and looked to be the better side. They didn’t take their chances until the 45th minute when Federico Gallego converted a penalty, and soon thereafter, Benjamin Lambot bundled the ball home for an equaliser. That must have been a great morale-booster going into half-time, and the home side looked better in the initial stages of the second period too. However, they couldn’t make it count and ended up conceding twice late on to lose yet again.

Full Time

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