FC Goa drew a blank at home as Jamshedpur FC held them to a goal-less draw in an Indian Super League encounter at the Fatorda Stadium on Monday.
Sergio Lobera’s side started without their influential midfielder Ahmed Jahouh as Edu Bedia and Lenny Rodrigues played deepest in the middle for Goa. For Jamshedpur, Sergio Cidoncha and Michael Soosairaj returned from injury as the Miners started with Farukh Chowdhary up front.
The first chance of the match fell FC Goa’s way when Brandon Fernandes picked up the ball at the halfway line and threaded a perfectly weighted through-ball for Jackichand Singh on the right flank in the 18th minute.
With the visitors holding a high defensive line, the winger surged into the box but was dispossessed by Dhanachandra Singh, whose sliding tackle averted danger. The teams then continued to prefer possession over penetration but could not break the deadlock before the break.
After the break, Goa striker Ferran Corominas, who struggled due to a lack of service in the first half, drifted wide and delivered a threatening cross from the right flank in the 53rd minute. Jackichand latched onto it inside the box but blazed his effort wide.
Goa continued to threaten from wide areas as only two minutes later, Hugo Boumous left Brandon’s low cross from the left flank for Corominas who had made an unmarked run towards the centre of the box. However, the Spaniard failed to connect.
Jamshedpur had a chance of their own in the 63rd minute when Robin Gurung found space on the overlap and provided a neat cut-back from the right flank for an unmarked Mario Arques in the centre of the box. The midfielder, however, could not keep his header on target.
There were close shaves at both ends as the second half wore on. In the 71st minute, Farukh Choudhary pounced on a failed clearance to swing a teasing cross from the right flank for Arques, who struck the ball over the bar with just the goalkeeper to beat.
A minute later, substitute and debutant Zaid Krouch went close for Goa. The forward was sent through after a series of neat passes by the hosts in midfield, but he hit straight at Jamshedpur custodian Subrata Paul.
Corominas took it upon himself in the 84th minute to help Goa find a late winner. The striker skipped past a couple of challenges inside the box before getting a shot away but Subrata showed a strong pair of hands to keep it out.The Jamshedpur custodian was at it again late on to brilliantly keep out Brandon’s close-range effort from Manvir Singh’s low cross.
Goa laid siege to the Jamshedpur goal towards the end but failed to break the deadlock. They are now in fourth spot with 21 points, while Jamshedpur are a point and a spot behind in the table.