Sporting Clube de Goa compounded Salgaocar Football Club’s miseries with a solitary goal victory at the Duler Stadium, Goa, on Sunday.
Ogba Kalu’s 23rd minute goal separated the two sides as Sporting Clube put their last match setback behind them. The win helped Sporting garner 18 points from 11 matches, the same as Salgaocar FC.
The defeat is a huge setback for Salgaocar FC who are now without a win in four matches. Derrick Pereira’s side had lost one game and drawn two coming into this game, and this is the first time they have to deal with two losses on the trot.
Sporting Clube started with a good intent and could have gone ahead in the third minute itself but Australian striker Boima Karpeh’s attempt went straight into the waiting hands of the goalkeeper.
Sporting Clube won a penalty in the ninth minute after Salgaocar defender Chika Wali was adjudged to have pushed Karpeh in the box but goalkeeper Karanjit Singh rescued his side with a low-dive to keep out Ogba Kalu’s resultant penalty.
The disappointment for Kalu and Sporting Clube did not last long as they broke the deadlock in the 23rd minute. Karpeh, receiving a ball from Arturo Garcia, did well to slide the ball into the path of Kalu and the Nigerian midfielder did well to beat Karanjit.
Salgaocar’s first real chance to get back into the game came little after the half hour mark when goalkeeper Ravi Kumar fumbled but Darryl Duffy saw his attempt blocked by Gonzalo Neila.
Salgaocar were a much better side after the change of ends but Duffy was well policed and the others could not really translate all the possession into goal.
Salgaocar, in the end, were lucky to walk away with just a solitary goal defeat because Sporting Clube missed two chances in the dying minutes of the match. Karpeh’’s low open header sailed wide from close range and another shot on a counter-attack hit the post and went out.
(Report & Picture courtesy AIFF Media)