ISL 2015: FC Goa come from behind to complete 3-1 rout of NorthEast United

FC Goa started game looking sharp, as they dominated possession in the opening ten minutes of the game. They didn't create any opportunities though, at least initially, and soon NorthEast United FC (NorthEast) found their feet.

Sanju Pradhan's full array of skills was on display on the right wing, and Goa defender Debabrata Roy couldn't keep up with him. The Indian winger looked the most threatening player on the pitch, and unsurprisingly he created the opening goal in the 11th minute of the game.

The 26-year-old dropped his shoulder and skipped past Debabrata too easily on the right. The former East Bengal player then showed the composure required to pick out his teammate, Francis Dadzie, at the far post. It was a perfectly weighted cross and the Ghanian striker found the back of the net with an immaculately placed header.

With Sanju terrorizing the Goa left back, Debabrata resorted to a horrible tackle in frustration. He took out the diminutive winger, but to everyone's surprise, the referee didn't show a card.

All this while, the visitors hardly touched the ball and Zico must have feared the worst at that point. His team, however, turned the match on its head in the space of two minutes.

21-year-old Brazilian midfielder, Jonatan Lucca, who made his first start of this ISL, scored in the 27th minute of the game to equalize for Goa. The goal came against the run of play as Zico's men crafted out the opening with some lovely build-up through the midfield.

Chinadorai Sabeeth made a diagonal run across the field and played a low cross for Jofre. The former Atletico de Kolkata player laid it off for Lucca at the edge of the box. The youngster shifted the ball on to his right foot and scored past a diving Bracigliano, with a lovely curling shot.

Just two minutes later, Reinaldo scored his second goal of the tournament as Jofre proved instrumental once again. The Spaniard drifted in from the left and his attempt on goal was blocked. However, the ball fell kindly for Reinaldo, who swept it home with his right foot.

NorthEast were shell shocked and the crowd was stunned to a deafening silence.

The match opened up at this point as both the teams pushed for a goal. The attacking trio of Goa were causing a lot of problems for the NorthEast defense. Reinaldo was drifting wide to the left with Jofre and Sabeeth taking turns to play through the middle. If Sanju was the most influential player in the first 25 minutes, Jofre took away that crown in the last 20 minutes of the first half.

Goa went into the halftime break with a 2-1 lead, and they would have been delighted at the character they had shown to bounce back after conceding an early lead.

Zico's team dropped deep at the start of the second half, as they looked to defend their lead and hit NorthEast on the break. The home team controlled most of the possession, but failed to create too many good openings.

In fact, it was Goa who looked more likely to extend their lead, as NorthEast left a lot of space at the back. In the 54th minute, Reinaldo came close to do so, as he ran at the defense and played a dangerous cross across the six-yard box. But Sabeeth, who stretched with his right foot, couldn't get the touch that was required.

Reinaldo squandered a big opportunity in the 63rd minute of the game. The Brazilian forward skipped past a defender on the right, but his side-foot attempt was too weak, and Bracigliano gathered it calmly. A couple of minutes later, the Italian goalkeeper made another close range save, this time from Jofre.

Eventually, in the 69th minute of the game, Goa doubled their lead with Mandar Rao Desai, who came on just two minutes before this event, finding the target. A superb pass by Leo Moura, in behind the fullback, put the winger through on goal, and Mandar made no mistake in stroking it past NorthEast's goalkeeper.

The matched ended 3-1 in the end and Zico will be over the moon at how his side bounced back after the disappointing result against Chennaiyin FC. But, their defense still looked shaky, and Lucio's leadership was missed at the back. Goa will now go into their match against Kerala Blasters with a lot of confidence, along with a better squad, after the return of the Indian internationals.

NorthEast have been weakened considerably due to injuries and Cesar Farias clearly doesn't have enough depth in the squad to replace players like Miguel Garcia and Simao Pedrosa. The Portuguese winger could, however, return for their next game against Chennaiyin FC and that should provide them with a big boost.