PANJIM: Debutant Aridane Santana scored from the penalty spot to give Hyderabad FC a perfect start in the Indian Super League following their solitary goal win over Odisha FC at Athletic Stadium, Bambolim, on Monday.
The result also saw the Nizams keep their first-ever clean sheet in the campaign.
There were lot of positives from the game as Goa’s Liston Colaco who came on as a second half substitute showed his brilliance on the field. His best move coming in the 67th minute, when he dribbled from the half-way mark into the box but was his low left foot grounder sailed past the keeper and the post.
Hyderabad should have done better with the chances they had created throughout the game. Though the debutant Spaniard scored the lone goal, he failed to keep his composure as he guided couple of set-pieces straight out of the frame.
The Nizams’ first real chance arrived in the 6th minute when Lluis Sastre whipped a perfect delivery into the box but Santana failed to direct his header towards goal.
That the visitors had worked on their set-pieces was evident. A smartly-executed corner in the 10th minute saw Akash Mishra force Odisha goalkeeper Arshdeep Singh into a save.
After constant probing, Hyderabad got their reward in the form of a penalty. Aridane Santana played Halicharan Narzary clear on goal, and his effort was handled by Odisha skipper Steven Taylor. Santana kept his composure and slotted home in the 35th minute.
Hyderabad keeper Subrata Paul had to wait until the 40th minute to make his first save, thwarting Odisha striker Manuel Onwu. The Nizams had chances to extend their lead but the outstanding Singh made a couple of good saves just before the breather.
Minutes after the restart, Odisha had their best opportunity to restore parity. But Nandhakumar Sekar’s poor first touch allowed Mishra to make a crucial goal-saving tackle.
At the hour mark, Odisha had yet another chance. Diego Mauricio ghosted past his marker and squared a pass into the area to Onwu, whose low shot was kept out by Paul.
Hyderabad almost doubled the lead from a set-piece but Joao Victor’s goal was rightly ruled offside. In the end, though, the misses did not matter, as Hyderabad held on for the win.
