Hyderabad demolish Odisha 6-1 as Ogbeche and Garcia rain goals
A brilliant brace from Bartholomew Ogbeche helped Hyderabad register a resounding 6-1 win over Odisha in ‘Match 43’ of the 2021-22 Indian Super League season on Tuesday.
Besides Ogbeche’s brace, Edu Garcia, Javi Siverio, and Joao Victor also scored for the Nizams with Lalhrezuala Sailung netting an own-goal as well while the Hyderabad central defender Juanan also scored an own goal.
Hyderabad head coach Manuel Marquez made two changes to his lineup as the veteran central defender Juanan returned to the starting XI with Joel Chianese dropping to the bench. Indian fullback Nim Dorjee Tamang also got a start at right-back with Nikhil Poojari replacing Rohit Danu in right-wing.
Odisha head coach Kiko Ramirez also made a few changes from the previous game against Goa. Gaurav Bora came in for Victor Mongil while Liridon Krasniqi and Thoiba Singh were also selected to provide stability to the midfield. Interestingly, Sahil Panwar played as a left-back for the first time this season.
The Nizams were off the blocks pretty quickly as they took the lead in the ninth minute when the Odisha defenders failed to deal with a Garcia freekick. After a pinball in the penalty area, the ball was deflected into the net courtesy of a soft touch off Sailung.
However, the Juggernauts retaliated immediately as Javi Hernandez put in a dangerous cross in the 16th minute and Juanan rippled his own net in an attempt to clear the cross. Ramirez’s men had a great opportunity to take the lead just a couple of minutes later when a brilliant ball from Nandakumar Sekar found Jonathas in the penalty area, but the Brazilian striker made a mess of the guilt-edged opportunity and failed to get a proper connection on the ball.
The Nizams soon made them pay for the missed chances as a fine delivery from Garcia saw Ogbeche lose his marker and head home the ball past Kamaljit Singh in the Odisha goal, giving Hyderabad the crucial lead in the 39th minute.
Marquez’s team started off the second half dazzlingly and Garcia, who was seen at his very best in this match, came up with a brilliant solo run from the midfield and then a fantastic finish to double Hyderabad’s lead.
Edu Garcia’s fantastic solo effort made the scoreline 3-1 in Hyderabad’s favor
The Nizams’ dominance did not end there as Ogbeche completed his brace only six minutes later when Aniket Jadhav won possession in the final third and found the Nigerian in space who launched a rocket of a shot to leave Kamaljit stranded.
Ramirez tried shuffling things up as he replaced Rodas and Thoiba with Victor Mongil and Vinit Rai respectively while Marquez also followed suit and brought on Joel Chianese and Javier Siverio to introduce fresh legs in the attack.
The former Las Palmas manager’s substitutions paid dividends as Hyderabad scored their fifth goal from a Chianese corner kick which was first cleared by the Odisha defenders. On the rebound, Juanan found Siverio in space from a subsequent cross, and the young Spaniard tucked in a shot past Kamaljit from point-blank range.
Siverio kept on having an influence on the proceedings as he earned a penalty in the 85th minute when Bora brought him down in the penalty area. Victor stepped up and scored from the spot to rub salts in Ramirez’s wounds.
With this massive win, Hyderabad has leapfrogged Jamshedpur and Kerala Blasters to reach the second position and will now take on fellow top-four contenders ATK Mohun Bagan on 5th January while the seventh-placed Odisha will aim for a turnaround when they take on league leaders Mumbai City on 3rd January.