I-League: Babović's strike propels Dempo to win, Gokulam-Aizawl play out draw

Dempo SC rode on Matija Babović’s early strike in the second half to beat Namdhari FC 1-0 in the opening game of Round 3 of the I-League 2024-25 at the Namdhari Stadium on Tuesday, December 3, 2024.

Gokularam Kerala and Aizawl FC settled for a draw in the other match of the day.

It was Dempo’s third clean sheet and second win in a row that takes them to the top of the table for the time being with seven points. Last week, they had beaten Shillong Lajong 2-0, with Serbian Babović scoring the second. Namdhari, on the other hand, remains winless and down in 10th spot with a solitary point.

Francis Addo, returning after serving a one-game suspension due to his red card against Delhi FC, was denied the opening goal by a crucial deflection from Mohamed Ali. The Dempo captain stuck his leg out to divert the Ghanaian’s powerful strike off target.

In the 38th minute, Addo went for an acrobatic volley from a Bhupinder Singh corner that would’ve surely been a goal-of-the-season contender had Sibi not been alert to make the save.

Dempo were once again quicker off the blocks at the start of the second half, and this time Namdhari were caught napping. The Golden Eagles got the breakthrough in the 47th minute when Knerkitalang Buam’s long ball unlocked the hosts’ high backline, allowing Matija Babović to run behind and poke the ball past a hapless Nishan Singh.

Babović almost got another one six minutes later as he glanced a header from a Mohamed Ali cross over the bar. Then came Namdhari’s best chance of getting an equaliser as Cledson Carvalho da Silva, who had a dormant first half, stole the ball from Ali in the final third, raced into the box and drilled a low strike centimetres wide of the far post.

From then on, the game became just about Dempo trying to fend off Namdhari’s Brazilian duo of Cledson and Vicente de Paula Mercedes, who came off the bench. But that Cledson chance turned out to be the closest the hosts would come to getting a goal in the match. Dempo remained solid defensively and Samir Naik’s impactful substitutions helped them see off the game and come out with all three points.

Next, the Golden Eagles will play fellow promoted side SC Bengaluru in Bengaluru on December 7. Namdhari will host Aizawl FC on December 8.

Hosts Gokulam Kerala salvage a point 

Hosts Gokulam Kerala FC managed to hold an Aizawl FC that started with an all-Indian XI to a 1-1 draw at the EMS Corporation Stadium.

After Lalhriatpuia put Aizawl in the lead in the 13th minute, midfielder Rishad equalised for his side (45+1’) at the end of the first half. Both Gokulam Kerala and Aizawl move to five points from three matches this season.

Amidst a frantic start, Aizawl capitalised on an early corner, as Lalhriatpuia’s powerful header from close range was deflected off a defender into the Gokulam goal.

A goal down in front of their home fans, Gokulam Kerala took the initiative to create inroads in the Aizawl backline. However, the away side maintained a firm defensive shape and afforded few opportunities to their hosts.

Uruguayan attacker Martin Chavez and Spaniard Labeledo combined to create a number of opportunities down the right for the Malabarians. In the 29th minute, Labeledo strung a precise through ball to right fullback Sebastian Zo inside the box. The latter sent in a swift cut-back, but it was cleared amidst a melee of feet.

For all their possession Gokulam were not able to penetrate a tight Aizawl backline. Their silver lining finally appeared in the form of a sublime long-range effort by Rishad from around 25 yards out into the top corner, just minutes before the half-time whistle.

The momentum did not shift in the second half, as the hosts pressed on. However, Aizawl managed to funnel Gokulam to the wide areas, and showed good coordination between the defensive line, to deal with the hosts’ crosses.

Gokulam’s Athul Unnikrishnan had the perfect chance in the 76th minute when a Chavez corner found him inside the six-yard box. The defender leapt higher than the rest and managed to get a free header, but his effort ballooned over.

Aizawl’s Awmawma and Augustine Lalrochana combined well in the last few minutes to trouble the Malabarians down the right, but Gokulam, who had shifted to three defenders at the back by then, managed to deal with any threat.