Pre-match talk of attack versus defence played out in the opening 45 minutes as Delhi saw more of the ball and had the better scoring chances. Kerala on their part simply defended and looked to hit their opponents on the counter. Brazilian striker Marcelinho had the first chance to open the account for Delhi when a quick throw-in on the right was flicked on by Richard Gadze to Marcelinho. The Brazilian lost little time in smashing the ball but it only ended up hitting the side netting. Gadze had a chance to score two minutes later but despite controlling a ball from Florent Malouda inside the box, he could not keep his attempt on target.

Kerala’s best chance of the half came late in the game. Kervens Belfort sent a good cross from the left for Didier Kadio in the 42nd minute but his header after generating tremendous power missed the target narrowly. Delhi turned the match on its head in the second session and had Kerala goalkeeper Sandip Nandy to thank for an unlikely mistake. A casual back pass was easy clearance but Gadze blocked his path, won the ball back and then set it up for Kean Lewis to keep his cool and slam it past a host of defenders.