Football: Atletico de Kolkata win ISL 2016 after beating Kerala Blasters 4-3 on penalties
The match went into penalties after Kolkata and Kerala were locked at 1-1 in regulation time.
Atletico de Kolkata beat Kerala Blasters on penalties in Kochi on Sunday to win the 2016 edition of the Indian Super League. The score was locked at 1-1 after 120 minutes after Kolkata’s Henrique Sereno had cancelled out Mohammed Rafi’s opener.
In the shootout, the Blasters took a 2-0 lead but there was a dramatic turnaround, which saw the home side miss two penalties. After missing the first kick, ATK converted their other four kicks to clinch the title. Jewel Raja netted the winning kick.
This is Atletico de Kolkata’s second title having also won the inaugural tournament back in 2014.
It was the Blasters who took the lead in the game through their striker Mohammed Rafi. Despite having more ball possession, Atletico de Kolkata struggled to create chances. But, they came back in the game through a timely equalising goal scored by Henrique Sereno, which came a minute before half-time.
The second half saw the teams taking little risks and there were very few chances created from either side. It was Kolkata who looked the more threatening side and they ultimately had the last laugh through the penalty shootout.