Chennai (Tamil Nadu) [India], November 9 : Chennaiyin FC and Mumbai City FC shared the spoils in the Indian Super League's 1000th game at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Chennai on Saturday following a 1-1 draw.
Captain Ryan Edwards opened the scoring for Chennaiyin after an hour of gritty play right as the clock struck 60'. However, Nathan Rodrigues (63') levelled the scores again after three minutes in an eventual draw.
Farukh Choudhary returned to the starting line-up for the league's 1000th match, having missed the 5-1 win over Jamshedpur FC with a knock. Mohammad Nawaz, Bikash Yumnam, and Elsinho retained their spots after impressing in the previous game, while Vincy Barretto recovered from an affliction to start again.
Nine minutes in, Connor Shields' creativity split the Mumbai City defense open to create an opportunity in transition for Vincy, who drove forward with the ball before drawing a good save out of Phruba Lachenpa. At the other end, Nawaz stood firm to thwart the visitors' attempts to alter the scoreline. The best chance of the first half, though, fell to the in-form Wilmar Jordan Gil, who was denied his seventh goal in five games by an acrobatic save from Lachenpa.
The two teams picked up where they had left off after the break. In their attempts to establish an advantage, Chennaiyin drew first blood when Shields' in-swinging set-piece delivery was met by Edwards inside the box. The CFC captain directed his header masterfully inside the post, before wheeling away in celebration. Three minutes later, a similar set-piece situation at the other end saw Mumbai City equalise through Nathan.
Late in the game, substitute Daniel Chima Chukwu's agile effort from the centre of the box was saved by Lachenpa, denying CFC a winner.
The draw sees Chennaiyin FC move up to fourth in the league table heading into the international break. The Marina Machans will be looking to continue on their upward trajectory when they face Kerala Blasters away from home on November 24.
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