Just imagine it: you are part of a football team, who won 3-0 in a Semi-final first leg. A week later, you travel to play the second leg, as visitors. The game goes on and then the events start to unfold.
Your defender receives a red card. The other team scores with a beautiful header. A penalty is given against you. Marco Materazzi scores the penalty. The referee cancels it because one of your team entered the box before the kick. The penalty is retaken. Materazzi misses it. You are ecstatic, almost crazy. Your other defender scores an own goal in the 75th minute. The officials add almost eight minutes of stoppage time. In the 93rd minute, you concede the 3rd goal. Now it is 3-3 on aggregate. It’s extra time. There are shots against the crossbar, chances and action. It’s the 117th minute. In your team’s first attack in the past hour, your midfielder scores a goal and makes it 3-1, but 4-3 for you on aggregate. You win. You are at the final.
This is a classic dramatic scenario of knock-out football. That’s exactly what happened tonight in Chennai, India between Chennaiyin FC and Kerala Blasters.
That’s pure Hollywood. I mean Bollywood.
This situation was too cruel, too good, too sad and emotional to be real, just like an Indian movie. Whether it was genuine? I can’t tell. I wouldn't be surprised though to find out that it wasn't 100% legal. But one thing is sure: The Indian Super League is a success in its first season. It has every material a real football league must-have. The famous European players, the crazy commentators the portions amounts of money that have been invested, the intensity and the script, which the best writers in Hollywood couldn't write. I mean Bollywood.