After a lacklustre opening half in which Nidhin Krishna\u2019s own goal put Delhi FC ahead, it took the last 10 minutes for the Malabarians to come to life and net twice through captain Sanchez and debutant Lalliansanga Renthlei, thus extending their winning streak to five games.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
The win sees Gokulam Kerala retake the second spot in the table with 29 points, five less than leaders Mohammedan Sporting. Delhi FC, on the other hand, suffered their first loss in five games at the Namdhari Stadium and remained in eighth place with 19 points.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
The hosts enjoyed a dominant first half, seeing plenty of the ball in the Gokulam Kerala half. Apart from an Alex S\u00e1nchez shot which was dragged wide in the third minute, the Malabarians created very little in the first period.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Skipper Pape Gassama was the mastermind of all of Delhi FC\u2019s attacks. In the 15th minute, he created the first real opportunity with a sumptuous through ball for Gwgwmsar Goyary, but the teenager\u2019s effort was well-saved one-on-one by Avilash Paul. A couple of minutes later, Gassama\u2019s free-kick from 30 yards out skimmed centimetres above the Gokulam goal.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
The Senegalese later got on the end of a Bali Gagandeep flick header, but Avilash showed quick reactions again to make a strong save from close range. However, he was finally beaten at the stroke of half-time when Gokulam defender Nidhin headed an in-swinging Gassama corner into his own net to put the hosts ahead.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Moments later, Gokulam had a shout for a penalty when captain \u00c1lex went down on a Vinil Poojary challenge, but referee Pratik Mondal waved play on. Both teams also suffered injury setbacks in the first half as Gokulam\u2019s Nikola Stojanovi\u0107 and Delhi\u2019s Alisher Kholmurodov had to be substituted for Basit Ahmed Bhat and Gurtej Singh, respectively.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
The responsibility of harbouring a comeback fell on league top-scorer Sanchez\u2019s shoulders. Soon after the restart, he cut inside from the right, skipped past two Delhi shirts and curled a left-footed shot inches wide of the top corner. Later, Naveen Kumar made a terrific save to tip the Spaniard\u2019s header over the bar after Delhi failed to clear Vikas\u2019 long throw.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
But the real drama was to come in the final few minutes. And it all started when Gokulam were awarded a penalty after Gurtej\u2019s handball in the area. Sanchez lodged the spot kick into the bottom left corner, but it had to be retaken as a Gokulam player had crept into the box. However, the skipper was confident enough to dispatch it perfectly again, this time slotting into the bottom right to score his 15th goal of the season.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
But the Malabarians were not done yet. In the 93rd minute, they found the winner when two substitutes combined. Noufal P.N probed into the box from the right and picked out Renthlei with his cross in the six-yard box, who headed in the winning goal just 10 minutes into his Gokulam debut.<\/p>\r\n\r\n", "image": "https:\/\/img.cricketnmore.com\/uploads\/2024\/02\/i-league-2023-24-late-fightback-helps-gokulam-kerala-extend-winning-streak-to-five-games.png", "alt_img": "I-League 2023-24: Late fightback helps Gokulam Kerala extend winning streak to five games", "alt_title": "I-League 2023-24: Late fightback helps Gokulam Kerala extend winning streak to five games", "image1": null, "video": null, "seo_title": "I-League 2023-24: Late Fightback Helps Gokulam Kerala Extend Winning Streak To Five Games On Cricketnmore", "seo_desc": "I-League 2023-24: Late Fightback Helps Gokulam Kerala Extend Winning Streak To Five Games, Sri Bhaini Sahib: Alex Sanchez and Lalliansanga Renthlei scored at the fag end of the match as Gokulam Kerala FC.", "seo_keywords": "Gokulam Kerala, Namdhari Stadium, Sri Bhaini Sahib, Alex Sanchez, Lalliansanga Renthlei, Gokulam Kerala FC, Delhi FC, Nidhin Krishna, Mohammedan Sporting, Skipper Pape Gassama, Gwgwmsar Goyary, Avilash Paul, The Senegalese, Bali Gagandeep, Vinil", "tag": "", "tagging": "Gokulam Kerala, Namdhari Stadium, Sri Bhaini Sahib, Alex Sanchez, Lalliansanga Renthlei, Gokulam Kerala FC, Delhi FC, Nidhin Krishna, Mohammedan Sporting, Skipper Pape Gassama, Gwgwmsar Goyary, Avilash Paul, The Senegalese, Bali Gagandeep", "status": "1", "img_rpt": "0", "google": "1", "standout": "0", "edapps": "0", "pulse": "0", "no_index": "0", "feed": "0", "fixture": null, "slug": "i-league-2023-24-late-fightback-helps-gokulam-kerala-extend-winning-streak-to-five-games", "user_id": "0", "read_count": "0", "ians_date": null, "ians_time": null, "server_time": null, "trash": "0", "view_count": "536", "page_break": "0", "instant_articles": "1", "auto_link": "0", "created": "2024-02-19 17:40:03", "updated": "2024-02-19 17:40:03", "img_from": "Image Source: IANS", "img_source": null, "schedule_publish": null, "news_keywords": "Gokulam Kerala, Namdhari Stadium, Sri Bhaini Sahib, Alex Sanchez, Lalliansanga Renthlei, Gokulam Kerala FC, Delhi FC, Nidhin Krishna, Mohammedan Sporting, Skipper Pape Gassama, Gwgwmsar Goyary, Avilash Paul, The Senegalese, Bali Gagandeep, Vinil", "livescore_text": null, "livescore_link": null, "btn_text": null, "resend_feed": "1", "google_feed": "1", "read_more": "0", "posted_by": "23", "jio_date": "2024-02-19 17:40:03", "scheduled": "0", "news_now": "0", "breaking_news": "0", "google_date": null, "featured": "0", "sports_name": "football", "cnmid": "868633", "link": "https:\/\/www.cricketnmore.com\/sports-news\/i-league-2023-24-late-fightback-helps-gokulam-kerala-extend-winning-streak-to-five-games-13353" }