Ratings: Sidoel, Hnamte lead SC East Bengal comeback vs Chennaiyin FC

The Red and Gold salvaged a point against the Marina Machans.

Despite being 0-2 down within the opening 15 minutes, SC East Bengal kept their spirits high, persisted and earned a draw against Chennaiyin FC. After conceding within the first couple of minutes through an unlucky Hira Mondal own-goal, Mario Rivera's men fell behind to a Ninthoi stunner. But SC East Bengal picked themselves up and launched a flurry of attacks into the Chennaiyin FC half. Marcelo Ribeiro and Antonio Perosevic were at the end of many chances, but they couldn't convert them.

The second half saw an SCEB side which was even more motivated to get something out of the game. The comeback was initiated by Darren Sidoel's pinpoint free-kick in the 61st minute. After 30 minutes of constant efforts, it was Lalrinliana Hnamte's deft flick which balanced the scales and ensured SC East Bengal left with a point as did Chennaiyin FC.

Here's how the players performed in the match:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8T8ecbgzcZU

SC East Bengal (by Rajdeep Saha)

Arindam Bhattacharya (GK) - 5.5

Apart from the unlucky own-goal and brilliant finishing from Ninthoi, Arindam didn’t have much to do. Hence, he had zero saves and no clearances.

Amarjit Singh Kiyam - 6.0

Played for the first 70 minutes or so, Singh had two interceptions under his belt and won both his aerial duels. Held his own against the likes of Jerry.

Adil Khan - 6.5

The centre-back was very efficient in his duels (six out of nine won). His passing accuracy was 79% and included eight long balls.

Franjo Prce- 6.5

The defender had an 85% passing accuracy, four clearances and won seven out of 12 duels he contested.

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Hira Mondal - 6.5

The defender’s passing was much better as he completed two of his five crosses. Had three clearances and three successful ground duels. Was quite active in the second half in terms of going forward.

Naorem Mahesh Singh - 7.0

The winger had another impressive display with two shots on target and one key pass.

Darren Sidoel - 7.5

The Dutch midfielder was instrumental in SC East Bengal's comeback with his brilliant free-kick hitting the net past a diving Debjit Majumder, Chennaiyin FC goalkeeper. Sidoel also made three clearances and two tackles in the middle of the park.

Sourav Das - 6.5

The midfielder was excellent in passing with an accuracy of 93% and had two key passes. Das also completed five out of six long balls.

Wahengbam Angousana - 7.5

He was brilliant in passing as he had an 83% accuracy and five key passes. Angousana also had two successful dribble attempts.

Antonio Perosevic - 6.5

The Croatian forward was lively going forward, but was unlucky not to convert any of his six off target shots. He won two key passes and had six successful duels.

Marcelo Ribeiro - 6.5

The Brazilian showed very good positioning and had many chances to add to his team’s tally, but failed. He had three shots off target, but did well to get on the end of these half-chances.

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Substitutes

Mohammed Rafique - N/A

The midfielder played for barely 10 minutes and couldn’t make any difference.

Naocha Singh - 6.5

The young defender did well on his debut after coming on. He made four tackles and won four out of six ground duels.

Fran Sota - 6.5

The Spaniard too was impressive in his debut as he showed glimpses of composure and technical ability. He completed all his dribbles and ground duels.

Lalrinliana Hnamte - 7.0

In the 15-odd minutes he played, he changed the game with his brilliant header, which levelled the score for the Red and Gold Brigade.

Raju Gaikwad - N/A

The defender came on quite late and made some difference with his long throws, which nearly led to a goal. But it was too little to rate him.

Chennaiyin FC (by Shivam Tiwari)

Debjit Majumder - 6.0

Debjit Majumder couldn't have done anything about the two goals Chennaiyin conceded. The first came from a free-kick targeted at the top right corner, while the second goal was the result of poor marking by his defenders. 

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Sajid Dhot - 5.0

It was a nightmare of a game for the Punjab-born defender. He misplaced two passes in his box in the first half. One of them led to a shot from Marcelo and the other required a rescue act from Slavko Damjanovic.

Slavko Damjanovic - 6.5

Slavko didn't have a lot of defending to do throughout the game. It was true even when East Bengal were putting pressure on Chennaiyin's defence in the second half.

He did come up with an act of rescue when Dhot misplaced his pass for the second time in the first half. Damjanovic was poor with his long-range passing, as he completed only two of his 10 attempts.

Narayan Das - 7.0

The Chennaiyin FC completed 10000 minutes in the ISL against East Bengal. Das marked the milestone with an impressive game. He sent 10 progressive passes on the left flank for Jerry Lalrinzuala. Jerry's cross for the opener of Chennaiyin came after Narayan Das played a long ball for the winger. 

Anirudh Thapa - 8.0

Anirudh Thapa showed everyone why he is the most in-form Indian midfielder in the ISL right now. His footwork, deceiving shoulder drops and turns were a treat to watch. He won 75% of his tackles, 75% of his ground duels and completed 60% of his long passes.

Vladimir Koman - 8.0

Vladimir Koman was a tier above all the central midfielders in the game. The Hungarian midfielder not only kept recycling the possession for his side through precise passing, but he also notched a couple of shot-creating actions, owing to the long balls. He finished the game with 94% passing accuracy.

Ninthoinganba Meetei - 9.0

Starting for only the third time in the season, Ninthoi was impressive with his work-ethic throughout his 63 minutes of stay. The 20-year-old didn't shy from taking on players and thanks to his excellent dribbling ability, he could get away from multiple defenders through a single move. He topped his outstanding display with what would be one of the best goals scored by an Indian this season.

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Jerry Lalrinzuala - 7.5

Jerry was influential for Chennaiyin down the left flank. His combination with Pasha and Narayan Das created a menace. Jerry put in the cross for Pasha for Chennaiyin's first goal. He put in six crosses in the game.

Ariel Borysiuk - 8.0

Borysiuk was the link between Chennaiyin's attack and the midfield. He completed all but one of his nine long passes. The Polish midfielder's quick one-twos with Anirudh Thapa nullified SC East Bengal's press for most of the game.

Suhail Pasha - 7.0

Suhail Pasha headed the ball before it reached Hira Mondal for a deflection to get into the net and give Chennaiyin the lead. He should have scored one for himself, when Ninthoi went past two defenders before sending in a cross for Pasha. However, Pasha scuffed his attempt. 

Nerijus Valskis - 6.0

While Chennaiyin's forwards enjoyed a great outing, Valskis was the odd one out of the group. The Lithuanian forward had an off day, as he failed to get himself in the path of any of the crosses put into the box. Valskis had just one shot in the 80 minutes of his stay on the pitch.

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Substitutes 

Mirlan Murzaev - 7.0

Mirlan didn't let his head coach down throughout his stay on the pitch. He was at his creative best after coming on. In one of the moves, he went past an East Bengal defender before nut-megging another to give a shot-creating pass in the box for Edwin Vanspaul.

Edwin Vanspaul - 6.0

He had the opportunity to seal the deal for his side at the 72nd minute. However, he scuffed his shot and denied his side three points.

Germanpreet Singh - 6.5

Germanpreet was brought in the game to replace Dhot and the Indian midfielder was definitely an upgrade. However, he failed to be an authoritative presence in the midfield or even help his side when the Red and Gold Brigade pressed them deep.

Lukasz Gikiewicz - NA

He was on the field for just nine minutes.

Reagan Singh - 6.0

Reagan wasn't particularly bad, but the idea of getting in a defensive replacement for Ninthoi was perhaps not thought through. He did all he could do, but the team suffered because his introduction weakened the attack.

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