Chennaiyin FC beat Delhi FC 2-1 for their third consecutive victory in a Group E fixture of the Durand Cup, in Guwahati at the Indira Gandhi Athletic Stadium on Friday. Chennaiyin FC thus finished the group unbeaten, securing nine points from three matches and head into the quarterfinals high on confidence. On the other hand, Delhi FC finished with two points from three matches courtesy two draws against Hyderabad FC and Tribhuvan Army FC. Rafael Crivellaro and Vincy Barretto scored for the winners while Pape Alassane Gassame scored one back for Delhi FC.
Chennaiyin FC Head Coach Owen Coyle rotated his squad making seven changes from the lineup that started against Tribhuvan Army FC.
Defenders Ankit Mukherjee, Aakash Sangwan, Bikash Yumnam and Captain Jordan Murray maintained their place in the team.
Delhi FC Coach Israil Gurung made five changes to the side with foreign imports Sergio Barboza and Gassame starting.
In search of full points from the game to keep their knockout qualification hopes alive, Delhi FC took the attack to the Chennaiyin defence. They managed to trouble the Chennaiyin defence but could not make full use of the chances.
Chennaiyin FC took full advantage of the single chance they got in the first half. Crivellaro received the ball from Sangwan and the Brazilian foxed three Delhi FC defenders to finish calmly past the goalkeeper and put his team ahead.
In the second half, Chennaiyin doubled their lead in the 51st minute through Barretto. Sachu Siby made a good run down the left and found Barretto inside the box, who finished in the bottom right corner past goalkeeper Nitish Mehra.
Delhi FC halved Chennaiyin’s advantage soon after as Gasaame’s free kick curled above Samik Mitra and landed inside the goal.
Chennaiyin FC could have put the match beyond Delhi but they could not convert the chances.
(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
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