I-League: Nestor strikes as Dempo secure first win at home

Margao: Nestor Dias came off the bench and scored the decisive goal seven minutes from time to give Dempo SC a 1-0 win against Delhi FC at Nehru Stadium, Fatorda, on Wednesday.
The calm and composed strike helped Dempo secure their first win at home in three games and end their five-match winless streak.
Dempo climbed to the seventh position in the I-League standings, with 14 points from 11 matches in the first phase of the competition.
Meanwhile, Delhi remained in the 11th spot with nine points. They have just a point more than bottom-placed Sporting Club Bengaluru.
The kick-off was delayed by 10 minutes as Delhi owner Ranjit Bajaj, whose name was not on the team sheet, had to be escorted from the bench.
Dempo fielded an all-Indian line-up for the first time this season as Syrian centre-back Shaher Shaheen was nursing an injury from the previous game where Dempo conceded a 0-2 defeat against Real Kashmir FC. Argentine midfielder Damian Perez and Nigerian forward Lukman Adefemi were on the bench.
Delhi started strongly with four foreign players in the starting 11 and controlled the proceedings in the initial moments.
But the home side slowly got into their rhythm and almost got an early breakthrough when Pruthvesh Pednekar sent in a dangerous cross inside the box. However, Knerkitalang Buam couldn’t get a neat connection and Delhi keeper Lalmuansagna collected the ball safely.
At the other end, Delhi won a corner and Dempo custodian Ashish Sibi was kept busy when he had to first punch away the set piece from Tondomba Singh and then block a powerful half volley from Sanson Pereira.
Soon, Ashish almost came up with an assist when his kick evaded the Delhi defence and found teammate Vieri Colaco. The Dempo left-back found himself in an unusual situation and couldn’t capitalise as Delhi defender Stephen Acquah recovered the ball on time.
Then Samir Binong moved dangerously in the box but Dempo centre-back Mohamed Ali intercepted neatly, even as Delhi appealed for a penalty.
At the hour mark, Dempo launched a quick counter as Shubham Rawat found Buam, but the latter couldn’t finish in a one-on-one situation.
Dempo coach Samir Naik tried to reorganise the team in the final quarter as he made three substitutions with the introduction of Kapil Hoble, Nestor Dias and Damian.
The move paid off in the 83rd minute when Kapil made a daunting run on the right flank and crossed. Nestor rushed inside the box, controlled the ball well and finished even better.
Dempo will now try to carry on the momentum when they host Rajasthan United on Saturday. The teams played out a 1-1 draw in Rajasthan in the first leg.