Odisha FC 1 (Jennifer Kankam Yeboah 74’)
lost to
East Bengal FC 3 (Elshaddai Acheampong 7’, 31’, 38’p)
AIFF Media Team
BHUBANESWAR: Ghanaian striker Elshaddai Acheampong ransacked the rival defence with a quick hat-trick as East Bengal FC defeated Odisha FC 3-1 in the Indian Women’s League 2024-25 at the Kalinga Stadium on Sunday, March 9, 2025.
Currently the table toppers, the Kolkata side now have 18 points from seven matches. Odisha FC are placed third with 11 points from seven outings.
East Bengal owe their victory largely to Elshaddai, who took the wind out of Odisha FC by completing her hat-trick in 38 minutes. Another Ghanaian, Jennifer Kankam Yeboah, found the target from an acute angle in the 74th minute to reduce the margin for Odisha FC.
Elshaddai is a quality poacher and opportunistic striker, who has the ability to convert half chances into potential goals. Her skills were on display early in the match even though defending champions Odisha FC were making the right noises near the East Bengal goalmouth. After Lynda Kom and Pyari Xaxa gave away the chances that came their way, East Bengal struck at the other end in the seventh minute.
Elshaddai had two able partners in Soumya Guguloth and Sulanjana Raul, who worked in tandem to leave Odisha defence thoroughly embarrassed. Soumya’s cross from the right inside the box was quickly dispatched by diminutive Sulanjana for Elshaddai. The Ghanaian took a quick turn and smashed the ball past goalkeeper Shreya Hooda.
Further misery was in store for Odisha in the 31st minute when Sulanjana ran in off a counterattack before releasing the ball for an unmarked Elshaddai at the right time. All Elshaddai had to do was send it past a hapless Shreya.
Elshaddai was proving to be a thorn in the flesh for Odisha FC. In the 38th minute, she darted into the box from the right before a desperate Maryam Juke Ibrahim in Odisha defence brought her down. Elshaddai’s conversion from the resultant penalty was solid; she sent it low to the far corner. Shreya Hooda had no chance to go for it even. Elshaddai has so far scored six goals in the ongoing IWL.
Odisha FC, under national coach Crispin Chettri, were too stunned to react to this early onslaught that snatched the match away from them. Though they never stopped asking questions in the rival area, especially after Jennifer’s goal, their inability to convert chances cost them dear.
In fact, the home side should consider themselves lucky for not losing by a bigger margin. In the second half, Sulanjana could have added two more and it could have been a tennis-like score had Ugandan Resty Nanziri’s shot not hit the post.
