In what turned out to be a dull encounter, former champion Chenniayin FC was held to a 1-1 draw by Kerala Blasters FC in the 2020-21 Indian Super League at the GMC Stadium in Goa on Sunday. With this, while Chennaiyin stays on seventh, Blasters lurks at tenth.
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The opening half began with five attacks until the fifth minute, including a couple of saves from both the goalkeepers. Meanwhile, four minutes later, Fatkhulo Fatkhulloev scored the opener for Chennaiyin, with his left foot to the centre from a similar spot, thanks to Edwin Vanspaul's assist.
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Six more attacks ensued until the 27th minute, as Chennaiyin almost doubled it, with Enes Sipovic hitting the bar, while its goalkeeper, Vishal Kaith, produced a save immediately after. Nonetheless, the very next minute saw Deepak Tangri's handball award Blasters a penalty, as Gary Hooper successfully converted the spot-kick, with his right foot to the bottom-left. Four more attempts were made, but to no avail, as the deadlock stayed at half-time.
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The second half saw four attacks until the 77th minute, while a couple of minutes later, Channiyin's Enes Sipovic earned his second yellow card of the game and was sent off. As Blasters intensified its attack, it came up with five more but failed to find the back of the net, while Kaith produced two crucial saves, with the match ending 1-1.
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As for the next game, Blasters would face fifth-placed NorthEast United FC on Friday, as the former is already out of the playoffs race, while the latter still has a chance. Meanwhile, Chennaiyin is done for the season, having played all the 20 games.
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