Chennaiyin FC players pay tribute to injured teammate Elsinho after Farukh Choudhary scored the side’s first goal during the Indian Super League 2025-26 match against Sporting Club Delhi. | Photo Credit: Chennaiyin FC

Chennaiyin FC eked out a hard-fought 1-0 win over SC Delhi in a bruising Indian Super League (ISL) 2025-26 encounter here at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium on Friday.

In the early evening kick-off, Farukh Choudhary provided a moment of inspiration to lift the spirits of the sparse home support, still trickling into the arena. The victory moved Clifford Miranda’s Chennaiyin into 10th behind Delhi, whose four-game unbeaten run came to an end.

It was a contrasting display from the home side in either half. In the opening 45 minutes, the players were aggressive off the ball, pressing all over the pitch, led by forward Daniel Chima Chukwu. Chukwu was more than a handful up front, while centre-back Pritam Kotal and midfielder Mohammed Ali Bemammer were clattering into Delhi’s attackers.

Farukh had an excellent first half, moving across the front line, linking the play with full-back Mandar Rao Dessai and creator Alberto Noguera.

Chennaiyin’s early pressure paid off in the 11th minute. The home side worked the ball from the right side to the left, pulling Delhi out of its defensive shape. Farukh, who had wandered into a pocket of space at the edge of the box, was found by a Noguera first-time pass, and the forward befuddled everyone in the stadium with what he did next. From an acute angle, Farukh used his weak foot to slice across the ball to find enough power to place it into the top corner, leaving Nora Fernandes a bystander in goal.

Delhi responded immediately after when Mohammed Aimen picked out Matija Babovic’s run into the Chennaiyin box with a clipped ball over the top. The attacker brought it down but failed to generate enough power with his shot on the turn.

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Chennaiyin regained control for the rest of the half but spurned a glorious chance to go 2-0 up before the break.

Noguera broke through the middle on a one-v-three counterattack, before playing in Irfan Yadwad down the right. With Noguera occupying the attention of Delhi’s defenders, the forward’s cross found Chukwu’s run in behind. The Nigerian took a little too much time in bringing the ball down before firing an effort at goal, allowing Alex Saji to make a crucial last-ditch block to stop Delhi from going two goals behind at the interval.

Miranda’s men couldn’t maintain the same tempo in the second period. Delhi was on the front foot, pressing Chennaiyin into committing errors on the ball.

Of Delhi’s 11 shots in the game, eight came in the second half, but crucially, the players didn’t get the right placements to trouble Mohammad Nawaz in goal. In the 51st minute, Saji had a free header from a free kick, which was straight at Nawaz.

Three minutes later, a poor pass from the back led to a turnover in possession from which Joseph Sunny blazed his effort over the bar after being set up by Babovic. Chennaiyin’s assistant coach stepped out of the dugout, urging his backline to slow things down.

Delhi’s front-three of Aimen, Babovic and Sunny started seeing more of the ball, forcing Chennaiyin back into its own half.

The visitor kept pushing right until the very death, setting up an anxious finish for the Chennaiyin fans. In the final seconds of stoppage time, K. Sourav’s snapshot from the edge of the box narrowly missed the far post, allowing the home supporters to breathe a sigh of relief and enjoy this season’s first home win.

Published on Apr 17, 2026