Manjeri, March 14 A second-half strike by Fabrice Kah ensured Sreenidi Deccan FC beat Gokulam Kerala FC 1-0 in Match 14 of the Indian Football League (IFL) 2025-26 at Payyanad Stadium in Manjeri on Saturday. Sreenidi Deccan provisionally climbed to the top of the table with six points from three matches, while Gokulam Kerala dropped to 10th in the table with two points from three matches.
Dimitris Dimitriou, in his first match as head coach of Gokulam Kerala FC, made two changes to the starting XI, bringing in midfielder Kingslee Fernandes and striker John Kennedy in place of Aman C.K. and Mirjalol Kasimov.
Meanwhile, Carlos Vaz Pinto made three alterations to his line-up, with goalkeeper Kamaljit Singh replacing Aryan Lamba, defender Deepak D.P. coming in for Muhammad Hammad, and Ajay Chhetri starting in midfield in place of Lalthankhuma.
The first half saw both sides jostling for possession in midfield, with neither able to create clear openings for their attackers. It was a tightly-contested period in which both teams maintained strong defensive organisation, leaving chances from open play at a premium.
Set-pieces provided the best opportunities for either side to break the deadlock. David Castañeda and Hadi Idrissou both missed free headers from corner kicks for the visitors, while the Malabarians also came closest to scoring from similar situations.
The visitors began the second half on the front foot, showing greater intent in the attacking third, and broke the deadlock nine minutes after the restart. Castañeda received the ball on the edge of the box but was held up by Amid Arezou, who was blocking his path. The Colombian managed to roll the ball across the six-yard box, catching the defenders off guard, and Fabrice Kah reacted quickest to bundle it into the back of the net.
Abhijith K. could have doubled the lead moments later, but the former Gokulam player scuffed his left-footed effort from inside the box after being played into space by Lalromawia. Substitute Brandon Vanlalremdika had earlier produced a clever dummy to create the opening for him.
At the other end, the Malabarians found it difficult to break down the Sreenidi defence, and Kamaljit remained largely untroubled in goal as the home side struggled to create clear opportunities with time running out.
In the end, Sreenidi Deccan held on to their slender lead to secure their second win of the season.
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