Ratings: Shields, Crivellaro power Chennaiyin FC to big win over Punjab FC

Connor Shields scored a brace

Chennaiyin FC thundered in five goals past Punjab FC in a 5-1 win at the Jawaharlal Nehru Indore Stadium in the ISL 2023/24 on Sunday. Owen Coyle's side looked to exploit Staikos Vergetis' setup from the start and the floodgates were opened by Chennaiyin centre-back Ryan Edwards. As the defender bundled the ball into the net after a heavy touch, Punjab saw glimpses of the nightmare to come.

Connor Shields followed suit with a tap-in three minutes later and Rafael Crivellaro made it three from the spot at the brink of half-time. After the break, the Shers' shambolic state of affairs went from bad to worse as Melroy Assisi was sent off for a dangerous tackle. Shortly afterward, Rahim Ali teed Shields up for his second and Chennaiyin's third. Vincy Barreto then put the final nail in the coffin before substitute Krishnananda pulled one back for the visitors who walked home with heavy hearts.

Here are the player ratings for the night:

Chennaiyin FC (By: Analoy Majumder)

Debjit Majumder: 6.5

Debjit Majumder, who returned to the starting XI, performed comparatively well. Debjit had very little work to do under the post today, so he put up a few respectable collections while maintaining his composure but ultimately failed to keep the clean sheet.

Ankit Mukherjee: 6.5

The defender produced key crucial blocks in front of goal, preventing the Punjab FC forwards from scoring. Ankit had a few useful interceptions and made a few committed tackles in the line of defence.

Ryan Edwards: 7.0

Ryan Edwards, the Marina Machans’s captain, scored the opening goal for Chennaiyin today. Did quite well both defensively and offensively and gave good momentum to his team throughout.

Aakash Sangwan: 6.5

Today, Aakash excelled in the backfield alongside Ankit and Bikash, demonstrating significant trust in the defensive line with successful tackles and substantial interceptions.

Bikash Yumnam: 7.0

Bikash Yumnam made a couple of good runs with the ball and helped the defence hold the attackers at bay in the final third. He also assisted when Ryan Edwards scored the first goal.

Cristian Damian Battocchio: 7.0

Battocchio worked effectively in Chennaiyin's midfield to prevent Punjab FC players from establishing movements in the middle half. He placed the players under a lot of pressure, culminating with four tackles and winning ball possession in the middle.

Ayush Adhikari: 6.5

Ayush could have been more effective in the attacking part as he performed sloppily in the latter part of the game once again. Ayush won a few duels against Juan Mera and also won a few ball possessions.

Rafael Crivellaro: 8.5

Crivellaro was in top form today, making devastating crosses and effortlessly penetrating the Punjab defence. Provided one assist and scored one goal for Chennaiyin from the penalty spot immediately before the end of the first half.

Farukh Choudhary: 6.5

Farukh Choudhary performed admirably offensively but fell short of expectations. Did well in the center and provided strong offensive and defensive assistance to his team. Taken off before the last quarter.

Rahim Ali: 7.5

Rahim delivered a notable effort and performed admirably playing alongside Connor Shields. Made 31 passes in total and came close to scoring two times along with winning five tackles.

Connor Shields: 9.0

Connor Shields stole the show today for Chennaiyin, he scored a brace and continuously kept putting pressure on the Punjab defenders. Tried to capitalise on every chance and increase their lead over Punjab.

Substitutes

Jordan Murray: 7.0

Murray from the time he came kept the Punjab defenders busy, and came quite close to goal. Jordan Murray sought to capitalize on every opportunity to score for Chennaiyin FC whenever he received the ball.

Jiteshwor: 6.5

Jiteshwor helped to Chennaiyin's defense as well as offensive situations by outdueling Punjab FC players on several occasions.

Vincy Barreto: 7.0

Vincy Barreto was the super sub for Chennaiyin today, as he scored the fifth goal in the 83rd minute and also paired well attacking wise alongside Connor and Jordan.

Alexander Romario Jesuraj: 6.5

Romario came in place of Rahim Ali in the last quarter. Gave both attacking and defensive support to Chennaiyin FC.

Petar Sliskovic: 6.0

Sliskovic added fresh legs to the team and performed significantly after he came.

Punjab FC(By Riddhiman Sarkar)

Ravi Kumar - 5.5

An evening to forget for the custodian who did make two saves but had nothing to do for the five goals scored. 

Khaiminthang Lhungdim - 6.5

Made more recoveries (seven out of nine on the ground) than his partner-in-crime for Chennaiyin’s third goal, but was still not very pivotal to his side.

Melroy Assisi- 4

Started off well before bundling over Crivellaro for a penalty which the inform attacker converted himself. Shown a straight red in the opening minutes of the second half for violent conduct after losing both of his ground tackles miserably.  

Dimitri Chaatzisaias - 6.5

Looked astray and lost amidst a swarm of Chennaiyin attackers as he barely contributed to defensive actions. Contesting and winning one ground duel and two aerial tussles did nothing to help his centre-back partner. 

Nitesh Darjee - 6.5

Probably the only consistent defender in the Punjab backline who attempted two long balls and one cross and completed 100% of his ground tackles. 

Brandon Vanlalremdika- 6

Barely penetrative with his one cross, two out of three completed long balls as he was taken off for Mashoor at halftime. 

Nikhil Prabhu - 6.5

Hoggled on for the entirety of 90 minutes and seemed to go off with a concerning injury. Although he was Punjab’s most responsible player with 10 recoveries out of 14 and four out of seven completed long balls, keeping him on the field for the entire game might prove to be costlier than Vergetis expected. 

Madih Talal - 6

Exchanged positions with Juan Mera to try and switch up the pace but to no avail as his 100% passing accuracy could not generate any genuine chances and Stalkos Vergetis ended up taking him off for SAFF U19 Final hero Manglengthang Kipgen. 

Prasanth K - 6

Did add pace to Punjab’s wings but Melroy’s dismissal clipped whatever faint trace of the same remained. Taken off at halftime for a more balanced outlet in Amarjit Singh Kiyam to make up for his lack of directness as was evident from his minuscule 14 touches. 

Luka Majcen - 6

The Punjab FC skipper couldn’t make a difference against a high-octane Chennaiyin side that pressed ruthlessly. Majcen was reduced to a shackled target as the Slovenian hitman could only muster one key pass and no shots at all, and finally taken off right past the half-hour mark for Daniel Lalhlimpuia. 

Juan Mera - 6.5

Allowed Talal to come forward as he went deeper to try and orchestrate play and open up more channels.  Eventually went off in the 77th minute for goalscorer Krishnananda after failing to complete all three of his attempted take-ons.

Substitutes

M.S Thangalakath - 6

Mashoor played as a defensive shield but couldn’t contribute anything stellar since they were already 3-0 down and his 22 touches proved how disjointed the entire team was after Melroy’s sending off .

Manglenthang Kipgen - 6.5

The wonderkid could not really affect the scoreline in a game featuring some of the best players in Indian club football. Kipgen’s only positive was his tactical soundness and tenacity to run for the 45 minutes he played. 

Amarjit Singh Kiyam - 6

Despite playing an entire half, Amarjit’s generation of one key pass will pose questions to Vergetis as to whether he was influential enough to be in contention for the starting eleven for the later games.

Krishnananda Khundongbam - 7

Only bright patch for Punjab in a mellow evening at the Marina Machans’ fortress as he scored against the run of play in the 86th minute. Although the forward’s goal came too late to be even considered consolation, his clinicality after getting only three touches on the ball for the 20 minutes he played, makes a case for selection in the future.

Daniel Lalhlimpuia - 6

Not very effective after coming on in the skipper’s stead and could barely make a mark with only eight touches on the ball and a solitary completed tackle.