Odisha FC (OFC) held FC Goa (FCG) to a 1-1 draw at the Kalinga Stadium in Guwahati on Monday, despite being a man down for the last quarter. Opening-half goals from Noah Sadaoui and Diego Mauricio set up a massive second half for a couple of playoff candidates, who will likely be pleased with the result because it didn’t hurt either of their chances.
First Half Battle
Sadaoui put Goa up in the second minute, setting the tone for the rest of the game. As OFC looked to drive forward, Alvaro Vazquez picked up the ball in midfield and found Sadaoui with a through pass on the left side of the box. The attacker got time to gather himself and smash the ball beyond Amrinder’s left hand as OFC’s defence stretched out and tracked back.
OFC did produce more opportunities, generally from the left, with Isak Ralte as its outlet. For the majority of the half, Goa defended closely and in numbers, leaving little room for the hosts to exploit until Ralte was fouled a few yards beyond the box at the end. Mauricio advanced to take the subsequent free-kick and pummelling a curler that Dheeraj Singh, who was racing to his right, couldn’t handle.
Sadaoui and Vazquez switched places, and Goa almost took the lead again before the half ended. Sadaoui’s left-wing cross found the striker, who had outpaced his man but sent his glancing header narrowly wide. Early in the second half, the two played electrifying end-to-end football.
Sadaoui put Vazquez through, who scored before the flag was raised for offside. In the next minute, Nandhakumar Sekar sent a well-weighted cross that found Saul Crespo’s tough header, only for Dheeraj to rush to his right and save. Goa was able to move the ball out to Sadaoui, who sent a long shot squarely at the goalie.
Tough Results
OFC was forced to slow things down in the 67th minute when left-back Sahil Panwar received a second yellow card for a tackle from behind. With no substantial forward drive from Goa, the home side made a flurry of positive replacements in the 81st minute, just after Amrinder had made a crucial save as Hernan Santana’s attempt went through a crowded penalty box.
While these replacements did not result in chances for OFC, it also did not face any significant threats to its goal until the conclusion of the game, with the exception of a free-kick from Brandon Fernandes that went over and a deflected long-range drive from Santana that Amrinder kept his eyes on.
OFC is tied on points with previous champion Bengaluru FC (BFC), but a point behind in sixth position, while Goa stays in fourth place. On Friday, OFC will host reigning champion Hyderabad FC (HFC), while Goa will return home to play previous champion Mumbai City (MCFC) on Saturday.