Hyderabad (Telangana) [India], December 21 : Jamshedpur FC snapped their winless streak with a thumping 5-0 victory against Hyderabad FC at the Gachibowli Stadium in the Indian Super League (ISL) 2023-24 on Thursday.
Nigerian striker Daniel Chima Chukwu powered an impactful turnaround for the Red Miners, scoring his first-ever ISL hat-trick to inflict another loss on the Thangboi Singto-coached unit.
Jamshedpur FC head coach Scott Cooper had sounded a stern warning to his team after their 1-0 defeat in the previous game against Bengaluru FC. He questioned their desire and mentioned that some of the players should be concerned about their place in the club with the January transfer window coming up. The reaction was a trigger to extract a response from the players, who despite having some very creative players in their ranks, were falling short of positive results far too often, as per ISL press release.
Chukwu put his hand up and spearheaded this comeback for the visitors, nodding in a cross by Imran Khan from the left flank in the second minute of the game to get Jamshedpur FC an early lead. That set the tone for the game, livening up the Jamshedpur FC frontline with every forward covering each blade of the grass to run circles around the Hyderabad FC backline.
Reliance Foundation Young Champs (RFYC) graduate Mohammed Sanan steered in the middle of the box and shifted the ball to the right flank before it was directed towards Jeremy Monzorro who firmly headed the ball into the box for Chukwu. The Nigerian brought out a fantastic, rather unforeseen trick off his books, pulling off an acrobatic overhead kick that hammered the ball into the top right corner. The nature of the goal, more than the strike itself, got Jamshedpur FC going to put in a relentless effort leaving no room for hope for Hyderabad FC to claw back in the proceedings.
However, their approach did slightly cool up after the half-time break, and Cooper perhaps felt the need to reignite the spirits with some fresh legs in the attacking unit. Seiminlen Doungel replaced Sanan and the attacker made an immediate impact, aiming for the back of the net from outside of the box and successfully rounding off the endeavour by adding the third goal to their tally in the 70th minute.
It was Chukwu's night of reckoning though, as the forward capped off the match by bringing up his hat-trick in the 79th minute. This one was a fairly straightforward effort, as Chukwu pounced upon an arguably listless Hyderabad FC backline and converted an opportunity set up for him by Nikhil Barla. That was preceded by Jonathan Moya scoring an own goal from a corner that Jamshedpur FC had earned moments after Doungel's goal, as the Red Miners brought curtains down on a five-star performance to bag their second victory of the season.
*Key Performer of the Match
Daniel Chima Chukwu (Jamshedpur FC)
Daniel Chima Chukwu has possibly given Jamshedpur FC the spark and impetus that they needed to add flavour to an uninspiring campaign thus far. He scored thrice, made three clearances, tackled once, and created a solitary goal-scoring opportunity to bring up possibly the finest performance of his ISL career so far.
What's next for both teams?
Jamshedpur FC will next play Odisha FC on December 29, whereas Hyderabad FC's run in the first half of this campaign has come to an end. The fixtures for the remaining ISL season have not been declared yet.
Brief Scores
Jamshedpur FC 5 (Daniel Chima Chukwu 2' 20' 79', Seiminlen Doungel 70', Jonathan Moya OG 74') - 0 Hyderabad FC.
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