Odisha started their 7th Indian Super League (ISL) campaign on a disappointing note as they lost to Hyderabad FC 1-0 in their opening match at the GMC Stadium in Bambolim, Goa today. Aridane Santana scored the all-important goal off a penalty kick in the 35th minute.

Penalty was awarded to Hyderabad FC when Odisha FC captain Steven Taylor handled the ball while making a sliding tackle inside the box. He was booked with a yellow card. Incidentally, striker Santana had done a nice job for Odisha FC in the previous edition of the ISL. But this time, his goal gave Hyderabad FC their first win in three ISL matches against Odisha FC. Odisha FC defeated Hyderabad FC in both the fixtures last season.

The game-plan to keep possession of the ball as much as possible in the first half, cost Odisha FC dear. They created pressure for themselves for playing defensive football. On the other hand, Hyderabad FC showed aggressive intent from the word go and their relentless attack earned them the well-deserved win in the fourth match of the ongoing ISL edition.

Odisha FC would have lost the match by a bigger margin if their goalkeeper Arshdeep Singh had not saved three goals in the first half. Odisha FC did create two scoring opportunities in the hard-fought match. But the opportunities were wasted by Manuel Onwu and Nandhakumar Sekar.

The Club Award goes to Hyderabad FC for winning the game. Halicharan Narzary gets the DHL Winning Pass of the Match Award. Aridane Santana takes home the Hero of the Match Award.

ODISHA FC: Arshdeep Singh (GK), Hendry Antonay, Saurabh Meher, Gaurav Bora, Shubham Sarangi, Steven Vincent Taylor (C), Thoiba Singh Moirangthem (Samuel), Marcelo Leite Pereira (Laishram Premjit Singh), Diego Mauricio Machado de Brito, Nandhakumar Sekar, Manuel Onwu Villafranca.
HYDERABAD FC: Subrata Paul (GK), Odei Onaindia Zabala, Akash Mishra, Asish Rai, Lluis Sastre, Joao Victor de Albuquerque Bruno, Mohammed Yasir, Hitesh Sharma, Halicharan Narzary, Nikhil Poojary, Aridane Jesus Santana Cabrera (C).
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PHOTO: Referee books Odisha FC captain Steven Taylor and awards a penalty to Hyderabad FC in match 4 of ISL-7 at the GMC Athletic Stadium in Bambolim on 23 November, 2020.