ISL: Talal steals the show in Punjab’s win over Hyderabad

Madih Talal put on a show with a goal and an assist and was the best player on the pitch to steer Punjab FC to a 2-0 win over struggling Hyderabad FC in the Indian Super League match

Hyderabad: Madih Talal put on a show with a goal and an assist and was the best player on the pitch to steer Punjab FC to a 2-0 win over struggling Hyderabad FC in the Indian Super League match at the GMC Balayogi Stadium in Hyderabad on Tuesday.

The newly-promoted side Punjab, who are playing their first season in the ISL, came into the game with a heavy 0-4 loss against Jamshedpur FC at home and Hyderabad suffered a narrow 1-2 loss in the last game at Bengaluru. Makhan Chothey took the first shot in the third minute to test the PFC goalkeeper Ravi Kumar.

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With midfielder and skipper Joao Victor and centre-back Alex Saji back in the side after serving the suspension, the hosts showed a lot of belief on the pitch. It seemed like the home side had their best 20 minutes of the season but the question remained, how long could they do it in the match?

For Staikos Vergetis’ side, midfielders Ricky John Shabong and Madih Talal were brilliant. The physical battle between PFC target man Wilmar Jordan Gil and Saji was one to watch. Numerous times, Mohammed Rafi was seen with long throws to the box, which was a clear tactic for Thangboi Singto’s side, who are desperate to score goals.

But at the 45+ 1 minute, Abhisekh did well to find Talal who fed it to Luka Majcen, who scored with a header. It was heartbreak for the home side, who did all the hard work but it was the away side who led 1-0 at the break.

HFC started the second half with the intent to score one and were continuously finding Rabeeh on the right flank. But PFC doubled the lead in the 55th minute with Talal at the edge of the box with a touch and spin beat goalkeeper Laximikanth Kattimani.

In the 64th minute, the game paused for a brief period due to one of the floodlights going off. On resumption, Hyderabad wanted to find a goal and players Abdul Rabeeh, Ramhlunchhunga and Chothe all came close but didn’t find the back of the net as PFC walked off the field a much happier side.