Kalyani:
Chennai City FC took a huge leap toward survival in the I-League with a 5-0 win over Indian Arrows here on Thursday.
A Vineeth Kumar brace coupled with goals from Rajesh, Jockson Dhas and Iqbal Hussain aided Chennai City FC to go four points clear of relegation rivals NEROCA, who had lost earlier in the day.
With this win, Chennai City also ended their five-match streak of losses and, coincidentally, their last win had come against NEROCA in the first phase of the season.
Coming on the back of a 2-1 loss against Sudeva Delhi FC, Chennai City FC took control of the game by the scruff of its neck.
The Chennai-based club dominated possession and created chances in a bid to propel themselves out of the relegation spot with a win.
The last affair between both the teams was a tactical battle with Chennai City only able to pip the Indian Arrows 1-0. However, this time as well nothing seemed to change as both teams entangled in a battle for midfield for much of the half.
All of Chennai’s possession failed to open the doors of the Arrows defence as the youngsters defended with acumen.
However, the Arrows could only hold out Chennai’s attacking intensity for so long. In the 36th minute, Sriram burst on the left flank and dribbled past the Arrows defence before squaring the ball for Rajesh. With a well-timed shot, Rajesh found the back of the net from close range to make it 1-0 in Chennai’s favour.
Chennai City FC continued their usual attacking form in the second half and were rewarded for their play as early as the 49th minute when a long ball from the midfield found Vineeth Kumar straight onto goal.
In the 59th minute, the Chennai-based club capitalized on attacking momentum as Jockson Dhas’s attempt from outside of the box flew into the back of the net.
With a 3-0 lead and the result of the match all but secured, Chennai continued to dominate possession and thwarted half chances for the Indian Arrows with ease.
