NEW DELHI: Despite throwing the kitchen sink in the dying moments of the game, Chennaiyin FC succumbed to a 1-2 loss at the hands of Mumbai City FC at the GMC Stadium in Bambolim on Wednesday.
This was Chennaiyin's second straight loss and they are languishing in eighth spot with four points from as many games.
Mumbai remained on top of the standings with 12 points from five matches. This was their fourth win on the trot and even though it was not one of their strongest displays, they still ended up bagging three points.
Having not scored in their previous two contests, the talk prior to the match was all about whether the two-time champions could finally get on the scoresheet. And the team looked up for the contest right from the start, starting aggressively.
And that start paid dividends in the 40th minute and the goal was all thanks to the electric pace of Lallianzuala Chhangte.
He drove down the right and then gets close to the byline and laid the ball on a plate for Jakub Sylvestr for a simple tap in.
It seemed Chennaiyin would go into half time with a deserved lead but Sergio Lobera's team equalised with practically the last kick of the opening 45 minutes. Hugo Boumous whipped in a dangerous corner and goalkeeper Vishal Kaith came out to punch but missed. The ball fell straight to Hernan Santana who was unmarked and he headed into an empty net.
The second half followed the same template with most of the chances falling Chennaiyin's way. But they were let down by the finishing and by some dubious refereeing decisions.
The biggest of them came in the 70th minute when Ahmed Jahouh hacked down Fatkhullo Fatkhuloev in the box but the referee L Ajitkumar Meitei waved play on. And the telling blow came soon after.
In the 75th minute, Adam Le Fondre showed his predatory instincts to get on the end of a scrap in the penalty box from a knockdown and made it 2-1.
And despite going down to 10 men following Esmael Goncalves' injury, Chennaiyin went till the last minute in an attempt to salvage something from the game but in the end, it was not to be.
Coach Csaba Laszlo lamented the refereeing errors while praising the fight shown by his boys. "I can't tell you how disappointed I am. The boys did a good job. The referee's decisions did not help and we were denied a couple of clear penalties."