Calicut’s Kervens Belfort (right), who scored two goals, celebrates a goal with his teammate Muhammed Gani.
| Photo Credit: Special arrangement
Haitian Kervens Belfort scored twice in a 10-minute spell in the second half as Calicut FC defeated Malappuram FC 2-1 in the Super League Kerala at the EMS Corporation Stadium, Kozhikode, on Saturday night.
The victory, its first at home, helped Calicut jump over Kannur Warriors and move to the top of the table with 13 points from seven matches.
Calicut, which had blanked Malappuram 3-0 at Manjeri in mid-September, dominated the match but could only find the net near the hour mark.
Malappuram, which won its opening match against Forca Kochi in early September and appeared to lose its way after that, put up a strong defence in the first half but could do nothing much as Calicut attacked in numbers in the next session.
Calicut’s opening goal came after a nice cross from the right from Thoi Singh to Gani Ahmmed Nigam inside the box. Finding two defenders troubling him, Gani quickly sent a back-pass to Belfort who found the roof of the net from the edge of the box in the 57th minute.
The move for Calicut’s second goal also began from the right with some nice combination play between Muhammed Riyas and Andres Nia at the end of which Belfort headed in neatly beating the goalkeeper Tenzin Samdup easily.
Malappuram reduced the margin through a penalty in the 80th minute with Pedro Manzi converting the opportunity soon after arriving in the 80th minute. With its Alex Sanchez missing a sitter early in the second half, shooting wide from close, it must have been a very disappointing day for Malappuram
The results: Calicut FC 2 (Kervens Belfort 57 & 66) bt Malappuram FC 1 (Pedro Manzi 80).
Friday’s match: Thiruvananthapuram Kombans 2 (Autemar Bispo 40-p, Shihad 90+4) bt Thrissur Magic FC 0.
Published – October 12, 2024 10:25 pm IST
