In a 90-minute power struggle, heads cleared the way for Mahindra United helping them notch up a crucial 3-1 win over Air India in a 19th round I-League match at the Cooperage ground on Saturday. Chidi Edeh headed home twice while Sushil Kumar Singh’s header earned them the third before Air India pulled one back in the dyeing moments.
By virtue of this win, the Mumbai giants moved into the fourth position with 27 points dislodging local rivals Mumbai FC on a goal difference.
Both started the match on positive notes with Mahindra emerging a better outfit at the end of the day. Derrick Pereira’s boys did well enough by engineering moves
from the midfield and then spreading those through the flanks to expose the defensive lapses of the opponents.
The goals were the results of errors committed by the Air India defenders. It took 23 minutes for the fancied outfit to draw the first blood. Susanth Mathew’s perfect floater was given the direction by Nigerian forward Chidi to put Mahindra 1-0 up.
Even after conceding the goal, the airmen tried their best to bounce back with even more gusto. But within seven minutes Man-of-the- Match Chidi bolstered the lead with a ditto of the first though the cross coming off Steven Dias this time.
The change of sides surprisingly saw both teams going into a shell. But an opportunistic Sushil made it 3-0 with an immaculate header following an addressed cross from Pierre Douhou.
The jeepmen could have won by even bigger margin, had they not squandered many sitters. Chidi wasted more than two while many of his teammates were found wanting in their finishing. With a couple of seconds left for the hooter, airmen reduced the margin through 72nd-minute substitute Kailash Patil.
Meanwhile, in another match in Goa, Mohammedan Sporting beat Vasco via a Mike Okora strike.
