Football
I-League: Gokulam Kerala beats Dempo; Real Kashmir play out draw with Sreenidi Deccan
Real Kashmir played almost the entire match with just ten men.
Gokulam Kerala's Abhijith K celebrates his goal against Dempo SC (Photo credit: I League)
Gokulam Kerala FC continued their renaissance, winning a third game on the trot with a narrow 1-0 victory over Dempo Sports Club in the 2024-25 I League on Tuesday.
Gokulam are now unbeaten in five matches and climb to second on the table. Dempo, meanwhile, continue their miserable run of form falling to their fourth loss in as many games.
In a high octane first half, it was Dempo who had the first clear chance to race into a lead, as early as the seventh minute of the game.
Pruthvesh Pednekar’s cross from the right wing was met perfectly by Shubham Rawat. The forward’s volley bounced off the crossbar, and goalkeeper Shibinraj Kunniyil’s shoulder, to safety.
From there, Gokulam seized control of the game. First, Adama Niane, having been played into space by Sergio Llamas, lashed a shot from outside the box only to see it bounce off the post.
A few minutes later, it was Ignacio Loyola’s turn, to have a go, and the Spaniard shot from outside the box again, the ball taking a huge deflection and heading seemingly towards goal. Despite being wrong-footed, Ashish Sibi adjusted brilliantly to palm it away.
In the 42nd minute, Niane missed what was perhaps the best opportunity of the half after Loyola had brilliantly squared the ball with a header inside the six yard box.
The forward merely needed to connect properly with the ball and direct it to goal to give Gokulam the lead. He didn’t do either and instead ended up eventually fouling the goalkeeper, earning a card for his troubles.
Dempo closed the half as they began, with a brilliant attempt that forced Shibinraj into yet another save. This chance came from a free-kick that Rawat curled through the wall. Shibinraj saw it late but dove to his right to palm it away.
Abhijith K – who had been brought on just two minutes prior – smashed it into the roof of the net. Dempo had one last chance to get something from the game, but Rawat dragged Laximanrao Rane’s cutback wide from five yards away.
Sreenidi Deccan took the lead twice in the match through Faysal Shayesteh and Angel Orelien only to see Real Kashmir’s Paulo Cezar and Muhammad Hammad scoring timely equalisers.
Real Kashmir’s Cameroonian recruit, Aminou Bouba, was shown the red card in less than a minute.
The draw meant Real Kashmir occupy the eighth spot in the points table with 10 points from eight games. Sreenidi Deccan, on the other hand, also have the same number of points after playing an identical number of matches but they see themselves at ninth spot because of an inferior goal difference.
Undeterred by the setback, Sreenidi Deccan regained the lead in the 15th minute. Following a series of passes that dissected the Kashmir defence, Orelien found himself with space to unleash a fierce shot that found the net, demonstrating the attacking prowess of the Deccan Warriors.
The persistent spirit of Real Kashmir shone through yet again as they equalised for the second time in the 22nd minute. From a well-placed Lalramsanga free-kick, the Sreenidi Deccan keeper managed only a partial clearance, and Hammad was on hand to pounce on the rebound, driving the ball home to level the scores.
As the match progressed, both teams had opportunities to clinch the win. Sreenidi Deccan, inspired by their recent comeback victory against Aizawl FC, pushed hard.
Vanlalremdika struck the woodwork, and Munoz’s header was brilliantly saved by the Real Kashmir goalkeeper, who also denied Orelien’s long-range effort that rattled the crossbar.
Despite playing a man down for virtually the entire match, Real Kashmir’s defence stood resilient, managing to hold off Sreenidi Deccan’s late surges to ensure the points were shared.
