I-League 2024-25: Gokulam Kerala FC edge past Namdhari FC following Thabiso Brown, Nacho Abeledo brilliance

The Malabarians have won four of their last five games in the I-League.

I-League club Gokulam Kerala FC secured a crucial 3-1 win over Namdhari FC as they trail the league leaders Churchill Brothers SC by three points with three match weeks remaining in the current season. The Malabarians are in a rich vein of form and have shown no signs of slowing down as they apply pressure on teams above them.

Goals from Thabiso Brown (57′), Adama Niane (81′), and Nacho Abeledo (90+2′) were enough for the away side to trump the home side. The win at the Namdhari Stadium will apply significant pressure on the teams sitting in the top three as they now have created a four-point separation from teams below.

.@GokulamKeralaFC excel in the second half against 9-man Namdhari to net full points 📈#NAMGKFC #ILeague 🏆 #IndianFootball ⚽ pic.twitter.com/9u2YVrjAds

— I-League (@ILeague_aiff) March 17, 2025

More misery for Namdhari FC in the I-League

Namdhari entered the game with a chance of leap-frogging Gokulam Kerala FC with a win, but their recent form suggested against this possibility. The home side won once in their last five games and came off a heart-breaking 3-2 loss against Inter Kashi in matchweek 18.

The defeat has harsh implications for Namdhari’s league standing, as they now find themselves in seventh place with 26 points from 19 games. Namdhari is threatened to be overtaken by Sreenidi Deccan if they win this week’s encounter against Inter Kashi. The loss severely hampers their title-winning chances, and they will rely on other results to maintain even a theoretical chance.

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Gokulam Kerala FC close the gap on the leaders

Gokulam Kerala FC, on the other hand, made it two wins in a row and is marching towards the top of the table. This victory strengthened their position in the league table but left them only three points from the top spot.

The visitors avenged their 0-2 loss against Namdhari in their last meeting, as they still have a chance of claiming the league title. In match week 19, the game began as Namdhari’s chances went from bad to worse. They went down to 10 men after defender Sukhandeep Singh was sent off in the 26th minute after getting his second yellow card.

While the home side went down a man in the first half, they parried away Gokulam Kerala’s threatening attacks. In a game when discipline was essential for the home side, three Namdhari players were on yellow cards before the break, and the team faced desperate straits. The misery was compounded in the 57th minute when Thabiso Brown broke the nearly hour-long deadlock with his sixth goal of the season, giving the visitors a deserved lead.

However, the pain for the home side did not stop there as top-scorer De received two quick-fire yellow cards, which left the home side to defend with nine men. While the anger from the sending-off did result in Namdhari bringing things level via Manvir Singh in the 63rd minute, the resistance came to a halt in the 81st minute.

Adama Niane finished past the keeper to give Gokulam a 2-1 lead after latching to a Llamas ball and effectively setting up the silencer. Nacho Abeledo then ensured all three points in stoppage time as Thabiso Brown returned the favour from the first goal, and Gokulam sealed the game in style.

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