ISL 11 | Goa’s Sadiku denies Mohammedan a victory

Mohammedan Sporting earns first ISL point in 1-1 draw with FC Goa, showcasing attacking prowess and defensive resilience.

Mohammedan Sporting picked up the first point of the ISL 11 after it was held to a 1-1 draw by the visiting FC Goa at the Kishore Bharati Stadium here on Saturday. The host went ahead through a penalty converted by Alexis Gomez but could not hold on for its first win as Armando Sadiku restored parity in injury-time.

Mohammedan Sporting showed a remarkable transformation from being a defensive side in the debut match (against NorthEast United FC) to a fiercely attacking side against Goa.

The host’s performance showed a nice interchanging of positions among its attackers while it made clever use of the flanks to create numerous openings to keep Goa’s seasoned goalkeeper Laxmikant Kattimani terribly busy.

The home team created three clear openings through striker Gomez, but it was Kattimani on two occasions and the crosspiece once denying the crafty Argentine striker.

The change of ends saw Mohammedan Sporting continuing its search for the elusive goal, which came in the 66th minute when Goa’s Spanish centre-back made the mistake of pulling down Gomez inside box.

Kattimani was finally beaten as Gomez found the net from the resultant penalty. Just when it looked like the ISL debutant would take home full points, Goa found the equaliser through Sadiku in injury-time after substitute Aakash Sangwan had set him up with a nice cross.

The result: Mohammedan Sporting 1 (Gomez 66-pen) drew with FC Goa 1 (Sadiku 90+4).