ISL: Gritty Jamshedpur see off Punjab FC 2-1, move to third spot

Jamshedpur FC broke the deadlock through Pratik Chaudhuri’s header in the 41st minute and later Javi Hernandez doubled the lead early in the second half

Pratik Chaudhuri and Javi Hernandez scored a goal each as Jamshedpur FC edged past Punjab FC 2-1 in the Indian Super League (ISL) 2024-25 season at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium here on Tuesday. The Men of Steel are now placed third in the standings, with 31 points from 17 games courtesy of 10 wins and a draw - trailing the second-placed FC Goa (33) by just two points. 

Jamshedpur FC broke the deadlock through Pratik Chaudhuri’s header in the 41st minute and later Javi Hernandez doubled the lead early in the second half. Punjab FC tried their level best to salvage something from the game but Ezequiel Vidal’s goal remained only as a consolation. With this defeat, Punjab FC are now winless in seven consecutive games this season (2D, L5). The hosts started the game proactively as they pegged back Jamshedpur FC’s backline with a flurry of attacks. Meanwhile, the visitors were looking for opportunities to break on the counter-attacks.

Courtesy of Punjab FC’s sustained pressure, the first chance of the game fell to Luka Majcen in the eighth minute. The move was started by Asmir Suljic before he released Muhammad Suhail on the right flank. The youngster found Majcen with a telling cross but his eventual attempt was saved by Albino Gomes. In the meantime, Jamshedpur FC also made a few inroads involving Javier Siverio and Reliance Foundation Young Champs (RFYC) graduate Mohammed Sanan. The Men of Steel were heavily dependent on their left channel, and despite some trouble, Punjab FC’s defence did enough to keep them at bay.

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However, Ricky Shabong had the opportunity to break the deadlock in the 21st minute when he combined with Suljic as he forced a save out of Albino. Punjab FC kept piling up the pressure on the Jamshedpur FC backline with Suljic orchestrating most of the moves. The likes of Majcen and Suhail also were getting involved. The game turned in the 41st minute when Jamshedpur FC took the lead courtesy of a goal from Pratik Chaudhuri. The defender rose the highest in the box from Rei Tachikawa’s corner and hammered it home past Muheet Shabir to hand Jamshedpur FC the lead against the run of play.

The goal pushed Punjab FC more as they ended the first half on a high with Suljic and Abhishek Meetei taking shots on target. However, none of those efforts were enough to get them to level terms at the break.

Panagiotis Dilmperis turned to Ezequiel Vidal at the start of the second half as Filip Mrzljak made way for him. However, things got complicated for the hosts when Muheet’s clearance cannoned off Javi Hernandez and landed straight into the back of the net in the 48th minute.

It started with a back pass from Nikhil Prabhu towards Ivan Novoselec before the experienced defender played a loose ball back to Muheet. With Javi pressing, the goalkeeper was in a hurry to clear his lines, and in the process, the ball struck him and found its way into the net.

Punjab FC finally pulled one back in the 58th minute when Vidal rifled one from distance and left the entire Jamshedpur FC backline including Albino in goal surprised. The Argentine swerved the ball past Pratik before nestling it into the bottom right corner. This was the 10th goal that Jamshedpur FC conceded from outside the penalty area in the ongoing season.

In the 60th minute, Dilmperis decided to freshen up the attack as he brought on Petros Giakoumakis and Leon Augustine replacing Majcen and Suhail.

Later, both teams made a few more changes to their lineup for that extra bit of energy for the business end of the game. While Punjab FC kept pushing forward in search of the equaliser, Khalid Jamil made sure he had the right players on the field to stop them from doing so.

In the 80th minute, Khalid decided to bolster defensively as he turned to Stephen Eze to close out the game, replacing Tachikawa in midfield. Leon had an opening in the 85th minute as a stray ball fell to his feet at the edge of the penalty area following a clearance from Eze. The winger aimed for the far post but his effort lacked any power as it was cleared by Pratik. Punjab FC players and their coach tried several combinations but in the end, they were the second best against a well-oiled Jamshedpur FC unit as they secured their 10th victory of the campaign.

Punjab FC will face Bengaluru FC next on February 1, whereas Jamshedpur FC will play FC Goa on February 2.

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