Ratings: Nandha, Victor shine for Odisha FC in win over NorthEast United

The misery continues for the Highlanders.

Odisha FC have defeated Northeast United FC 3-1 at the Indira Gandhi Athletic Stadium, in a game that was pretty dominated by them from the very start. A goal in the first half, followed by the second in the 65th minute, made the win almost certain for the Juggernauts, before both teams were awarded a penalty each.

After claiming three points in this game, Odisha now look at an exciting final game against Jamshedpur, whereas NorthEast will be drawing the curtains on their season against Chennaiyin FC.

Here are the ratings from the game:

NorthEast United (By Keshava Verma)

Arindam Bhattacharya - 6

Arindam let past three goals, and made a huge error in Odisha FC’s first goal, as the ball casually rolled past his near post.

Hira Mondal - 6

Hira was poor in the right-back position tonight, and allowed Pedro Martin to exploit his wing on several occasions. The 26-year-old was also unimpressive with his tracking back, and his defensive contributions were slim.

 Alex Saji – 6.5

Saji did pretty well in a foreign position, and filled the boots of the suspended Mashoor Shereef. The interim centre-back kept Odisha FC’s attack quiet for a good while.

 Aaron Evans - 7

Aaron had a good game, despite conceding two goals. The Australian did well to organize the defence in the absence of another proper centre-back, and kept Diego Mauricio quiet for the entire game.

Tondonba Singh - 6

Tondonba played two key passes and crosses respectively, but wasn’t up to scratch with his defensive contributions.

Joseba Beitia - 6

Despite being in the midfield for the entirety of the game, Beitia had only 50 passes, and his numbers weren’t impressive both defensively as well as attackingly.

Gani Nigam - 7

In his first start for the Highlanders, Gani put on a decent performance, and won a total of 12 duels. He also made four tackles and three interceptions.

Jithin MS – 6.5

Jithin was somewhat solid on the wings with his lightning speed and incredible control, but lost possession on 18 different occasions. He didn’t do well in the latter stages of the game.

Parthib Gogoi - 7

Parthib was once again NorthEast United’s best player on the pitch. The youngster made some great runs, and created some of the best chances for the home team. He was once again lethal from the right wing.

Wilmar Jordan - 7

Jordan’s return to action was a decent one, as the skipper scored NorthEast United’s solitary goal. Other than that, the player was pretty abstract throughout the game.

Kule Mbombo – 6.5

Kule had one of his better performances with the Highlanders, as he was more involved in the game as usual. He is yet to perform as per the expectations.

Substitutes

Emil Benny – 6.5

Emil Benny played for about 20 minutes, and had 16 touches. He made a solitary interception.

Romain Philippoteaux – 6.5

Philippoteaux came one in the final quarter of the game and didn’t have much of a say. Statistically he was not at all involved, as he had only seven touches, and played no key pass or cross.

Laldanmawia Ralte – 5.5

Danmawia came on for the final 10 minutes, and unfortunately gave away a penalty, which led to NorthEast United conceding their third goal.

Imran Khan – 6.5

Imran replaced Jithin in the 80th minute, and had four touches. He played one successful long ball, which gave Jordan a great chance in front of the goal.

Odisha FC (by Waseem Zaidi)

Amrinder Singh (GK) - 7.0

The custodian was unlucky to concede the penalty and not come away with a clean sheet. He only faced five shots on goal and had the box under control.

Narender Gahlot - 7.0

The defender was all over NorthEast United's attackers. He made two clearances, two interceptions and five tackles. He picked a yellow card in the second half that pushed Josep Gombau to take him off.

Carlos Delgado - 8.0

Carlos Delgado made three clearances and four tackles in a strong performance. His leadership in defence was noteworthy and enabled Odisha FC to push forward with confidence.

Sahil Panwar - 7.0

Sahil Panwar had a good outing as the defender contributed with an assist and also created two scoring chances for his team. He was defensively sound, making seven tackles and three successful interceptions.

Thoiba Singh - 6.5

Thoiba Singh did his duties well in defence. He finished the game with a 91% pass completion rate, showcasing good composure on the ball.

Raynier Fernandes - 7.0

The midfielder created two big chances for his team in a solid display. He played for 58 minutes.

Saul Crespo - 8.0

Saul Crespo was once again central to everything good that was done by Odisha FC. He won the penalty that led to the third goal.

Pedro Martin - 6.5

Pedro Martin had several chances to score on the night. He glanced three shots but did not get any of them on target. 

Nandhakumar Sekar - 9.0

Nandhakumar Sekar scored a fabulous goal from long-range to give his team the lead. He also created three scoring chances for his team in a fabulous performance.

Isak Vanlalruatfela - 6.5

Isak Valalruatefela had a strong first half performance where he created two scoring chances and had one shot on target.

Diego Mauricio - 7.5

Diego Mauricio made no mistake in converting Odisha FC’s third goal from the penalty spot. The striker was also heavily involved in the side's build-up on several occasions.

Substitutes

Jerry Mawihmingthanga - 6.5

Jerry had 14 touches in 44 minutes of game-time. Didn't have any meaningful contribution.

Shubham Sarangi - 4.5

The defender came on to inject more energy in defence and kept his team firmly in control of the game. However, he gave away a soft penalty in the dying minutes of the match.

Victor Rodriguez - 8.5

Victor Rodriguez scored a brilliant individual goal after coming on from the bench. His inclusion gave Odisha FC a lot of confidence.

Isaac Chhakchhuak - 7.0

Isaac was busy after coming on as a sub. He made two successful tackles and got 24 touches in 32 minutes of game-time.

Michael Soosairaj - 5.5

Completed six passes in 10 minutes, with no major impact on the game from him.