Ratings: Iker Guarrotxena shines as FC Goa drub Jamshedpur FC

The Gaurs toppled the Men of Steel in front of a bustling atmosphere at the Fatorda Stadium.

A buoyant FC Goa overpowered a stuttering Jamshedpur FC side with a 3-0 scoreline in the ISL 2022-23 on Thursday. Carlos Pena's men started the proceedings early with a goal from Iker Guarrotxena in the second minute. Aidy Boothroyd could not really prepare his players to rally back as Goa struck 10 minutes later. This time Noah Sadaoui ran riot with his half-space running as he left Eli Sabia choking on dust and placed a wonderful shot into TP Rehenesh's far post.

After the break, the scenario did not really change a lot as the Gaurs maintained large swathes of possession and did not face any dangerous situations that threatened their advantage. With 70% ball possession, well into the seven minutes of stoppage time, substitute Brison Fernandes put the final nail in the coffin for Jamshedpur FC. The game ended with FC Goa surging to the second spot in the League table and Jamshedpur FC slipping down to the eighth place.

Let us take a look at Khel Now's player ratings for the game.

FC Goa (By Riddhiman Sarkar)

Dheeraj Singh - 7.5

Dheeraj faced a few shots in the closing stages of the game but handled all of them with grace and poise. He made three saves and punched out two stinging shots as he kept Jamshedpur at bay and allowed FC Goa to advance forward.  

Seriton Fernandes - 7

Solid at right-back, Seriton helped Goa play out from the back and kept asking Ricky Lallawmawma questions. He fended off Ritwik Das on multiple occasions as he won 70% of his ground duels and made six tackles.

Anwar Ali - 6.5

Anwar was watchful at the heart of defence as he combined well with Glan Martins to fend off Daniel Chima Chukwu and later Harry Sawyer. He frustrated the already incoherent Jamshedpur attack with six clearances and won three aerial duels out of five.

Fares Arnaout - N/A

The Syrian only played 10 minutes before coming off injured. He was replaced by Glan Martins in what was an unusual substitution by Carlos Pena in the 11th minute.

Aiban Dohling - 6.5

The reliable full-back was tasked with more defensive duties and fulfilled them efficiently. Aiban marked Boris Singh everywhere he went and did not give him a millimetre of space as he won six out of his 11 contested ground duels.

Edu Bedia - 7.5

Bedia pulled the strings in midfield in what was another spectacular day at office for the Spanish regista. He created Goa’s first goal, and made the key pass for their third of the night. He amassed a whopping total of 118 touches as he completed 96 passes (89%) and five long balls out of eight.

Ayush Chhetri - 6.5

Ayush covered acres of space as he contested all 97 minutes of action and won five out of seven ground duels. The youngster worked tirelessly to keep the gears moving and silently helped progress Goa’s play from defence to attack.  

Redeem Tlang - 7

The diminutive winger once again showcased his unique aerial abilities as he burst into the space between Eli Sabia and Peter Hartley on one instance and looped a header towards goal. He participated in Goa’s enviable passing that saw them dominate possession.

Redeem got into a vital position only once in the opening stages as he expertly flicked the ball into Guarrotxena’s path for the first goal and was less involved afterward. He was substituted off for Makan Chothe in the 69th minute after he got only 22 touches on the ball. 

Also Read: FC Goa earn dominating win over Jamshedpur FC at home

Brandon Fernandes - 7

He was one of the architects of Jamshedpur’s destruction as the Gaurs perfected passing and kept possession under his leadership. Brandon himself contributed with an inch-perfect ball for Noah’s first and Goa’s second goal of the night. He came off for Brison in the 85th minute with an 89% passing accuracy.

Noah Sadaoui - 8

Whether it be pace, passing, finishing or dribbling, the Moroccan winger had it all. Playing off the wings and operating in a false 9 role, Noah spearheaded the Gaurs’ attack. He scored FC Goa’s second goal against Jamshedpur as he ghosted into space behind Hartley, collected Brandon’s threaded pass and finished into the far corner emphatically. He finished the game with two shots on target, one of which was blocked.  

Iker Guarrotxena - 8

He dropped deep to help out the likes of Edu Bedia, Aiban Dohling and Seriton Fernandes. Guarrotxena also opened the scoring for Goa by turning in Redeem Tlang’s flick off Edu Bedia’s curling low cross into the box. He completed his only take-on as he drifted in and out of pressure like a maestro.

Substitutes

Glan Martins - 7

The midfielder was brought on in an unusual centre-back role but played like a natural in the position. Despite that, he played as an extra midfielder behind Edu Bedia and Ayush Chhetri as he got on the ball 74 times in 80 minutes. Glan also completed four out of his six attempted long balls as he added that extra fluidity to the Gaurs' possession-based gameplay.

Brison Fernandes - 7

The 21-year-old super sub scored a spectacular volley after coming on in place of captain Brandon. In spite of getting only a meagre 8 touches on the ball, Brison scored from his only shot on target and won all four of his ground duels. 

Makan Chothe - 6

Chothe attempted 11 passes and completed eight of them. He was not very visible otherwise.   

Saviour Gama - N/A

He played only 13 minutes and only made one interception, one tackle and blocked one shot.

Jamshedpur FC (By Waseem Zaidi)

TP Rehenesh - 4.0

The custodian did not get a lot of help from his defence while conceding the first two goals in the first half. He also made an unforced error in the second half which almost led to FC Goa’s third goal. For the third goal too, the defence left him wide open.

Ricky Lallawmawma - 6.5

Ricky Lallawmawma was decent with his work ethic but conceding three goals had a demoralising effect on him. Having said that, he made seven tackles, two interceptions and attempted two crosses too.

Eli Sabia - 4.0

Eli Sabia did not have a good game, played 46 minutes and was taken off early by the head coach. He was also lucky to be on the field after dodging a potential red card for tripping Noah Sadaoui who was darting towards the goal.

Peter Hartley - 5.5

There was a clear lack of cohesion between Peter Hartley and Eli Sabia tonight. The pairing was easily penetrated on few occasions, one of which led to the goal by Noah Sadaoui. The skipper was individually solid but failed to lead his team by example.

Laldinliana Renthlei - 7.0

The full-back saw a lot of the ball and was one of the few players in the JFC lineup that had a good game. He had 61 touches on the ball and completed 22 passes. Renthlei made five clearances, five interceptions, two blocks and three successful tackles in a solid performance.

Jitendra Singh - 4.0

Jitendra was one of the early casualties who was taken off by the tactician to get back into the game. From 46 minutes of game time, the youngster delivered six passes and only enjoyed nine touches on the ball.

Wellington Priori - 6.5

Wellington was one of the few Jamshedpur FC players who had a positive first half performance against FC Goa. The midfielder registered two shots on target and had 33 touches in 55 minutes of game time.

Boris Singh - 5.5

Boris Singh also played 55 minutes during the game and did not have much impact on the proceedings. The winger neither made a single cross nor created any scoring chances for his teammates. A night to forget for the lad may be!

Ritwik Das - 6.0

Ritwik Das did create two scoring chances for his team and also had a shot which went off-target. He made way for Seiminlen Doungel in the second half after running out of gas at the 72nd-minute mark.

Daniel Chima Chukwu - 6.5

Daniel Chima gave his everything on the pitch and had a good chance to score if not for his wayward shooting. He also created a scoring chance but it was not the striker’s day.

Farukh Choudhary - 5.5

The attacker had only 27 touches on the ball after playing the whole duration of the game. He created one chance but spent most of his time chasing the ball in the middle third.

Substitutes

Harry Sawyer - 6.5

Harry Sawyer was positive in his approach and held the ball well as the target man. The tall striker could have scored with a header but unfortunately for him, it went wide.

Pratik Chaudhari - 5.5

Pratik picked up a yellow card after a bad tackle on young Brison Fernandes. He also miscued a shot from the edge of the box which could have led to a goal.

Jay Emmanuel-Thomas - 6.0

JET made a few attempts to create something for his team. Despite producing three scoring chances, he was not able to help the team secure any points.

PC Laldinpuia - 6.0

He came on as a sub to inject more energy on the pitch. Laldinpuia was unable to help the team claw its way back into the game.

Seiminlen Doungel - 5.0

He made his 100th ISL appearance from the bench which was the only highlight of his short spell in the game.