Vasco (Goa), (Asian independent) Igor Angulo scored a stoppage-time winner to help FC Goa script a thrilling 2-1 victory over Jamshedpur FC in the Indian Super League (ISL) at the Tilak Maidan on Wednesday.
Stephen Eze had put Jamshedpur ahead in the first half but Angulo’s brace helped Goa claim all three points and end Jamshedpur’s six-match unbeaten run.
Both sides showed attacking intent from the beginning but had only one shot on target in the first half as they failed to create clear-cut opportunities.
Brandon Fernandes had a chance to put his side ahead early on when he was set up by Jorge Ortiz on the left. The midfielder got the ball at the edge of the box and curled a shot at the far post, only to see his attempt miss the top corner.
Jamshedpur broke the deadlock at the half-hour mark and the goal came from a set-piece. Aitor Monroy put in a long ball at the far post and Eze managed to beat Mohammad Nawaz with an outstretched right foot. The Goa custodian should have done better though.
Jamshedpur’s defence frustrated Goa’s attack in the first half, with Eze standing tall at the back. The defender was there to thwart every danger posed by the Gaurs. Though Goa dominated in terms of possession and passes, they hardly tested Jamshedpur keeper T.P. Rehenesh in the first 45 minutes.
Jamshedpur nearly doubled the lead soon after the restart but Nawaz’s brilliant save kept his side in the game. Isaac Vanmalsawma found Jackichand Singh and the former Goa player played a first-time pass to Aniket Jadhav. He pulled the trigger but an alert Nawaz did well to deflect the ball over the crossbar.
Goa squandered an opportunity when Angulo shot wide with only the keeper at his mercy. Minutes later, Ortiz had a shot saved by Rehenesh. But Goa were not to be denied. The Gaurs were awarded a penalty when James Donachie was brought down inside the box by Alexandre Lima. Angulo sent the keeper in the wrong direction to net his seventh goal of the competition.
Jamshedpur nearly restored their lead in the 70th minute but Nerijus Valskis’s brilliantly-taken free-kick came off the crossbar.
Goa were lucky not to concede late in the game when Valskis played Lima on goal. The latter took a first-time shot which hit the crossbar, bounced off the line, and came back in to play. Replays suggested that the ball bounced inside the goal. That decision would cost Jamshedpur dear as Angulo guided in a corner-kick in stoppage time to gift Goa the win.