Rahul Raju, Trijoy Dias and Thabiso Brown struck in the first half to hand the home side a commanding 3-0 lead at the break. Aizawl FC mounted a late fightback with goals from Malsawmzuala Tlangte and H. Lalrempuia to make it 3-2, but Rahul Raju’s second of the match in stoppage time sealed all three points for the Malabarians. Rahul Raju was adjudged Player of the Match.
Gokulam Kerala climbed to fourth in the table with eight points from six matches, while Aizawl FC with same points moved down to fifth in the table.
Gokulam Kerala Head Coach Dimitris Dimitriou made five changes to his starting XI, with Rakshit Dagar coming in for Shibinraj Kunniyil in goal. In defence, Bouba Aminou and Harpreet Singh replaced Amid Arezou and Sachu Siby, while Shigil N. and Armand Bazie were introduced in midfield in place of the injured Kingslee Fernandes and Mirjalol Kasimov.
Meanwhile, Aizawl FC head coach R. Lalruatfela made two changes, bringing in T. Lalmuanawma and Lalhriatpuia for Zomuansanga and Rodriguez Luis.
The home side stunned the visitors with a blistering start, scoring twice inside the opening four minutes. Trijoy Dias picked out an unmarked Rahul Raju with a low cross into the box, and the midfielder made no mistake, controlling the ball before finishing with ease to open the scoring.
Moments later, Rahul turned provider as Gokulam Kerala doubled their lead in the fourth minute. He threaded a perfect through ball into the path of Trijoy, who timed his run well, took a touch, and fired a powerful left-footed shot past the goalkeeper.
The visitors responded well to the early setback, creating a couple of good chances of their own. Laltlanzova’s left-footed effort looked destined for the net but struck his teammate Vincent Lalduhawma and went out of play. Moments later, Vincent found space inside the box, but his attempt was well saved by Rakshit Dagar.
The Malabarians added a third just after the drinks break. Rahul Raju, who was having an outstanding game, played the ball into space for Moses Lalrinzuala. The winger delivered a pinpoint cross to the near post, where Thabiso Brown glanced a header past Vanlalhriatpuia to extend the lead.
The home side were in full flow, threatening to add to their lead with every attack and coming close on multiple occasions. First half substitute Soyal Joshy’s long-range effort whisked past the post with the goalkeeper rooted to his spot. However, they went into the break with a commanding three-goal advantage after withstanding a late burst by the opposition at the end of the half.
The second half was played at a slower tempo, with Gokulam Kerala tightening up at the back to protect their lead. Lalruatfela introduced fresh legs in attack in an attempt to raise the tempo, but the Malabarians maintained control in midfield, making it difficult for the People’s Club to create clear-cut chances.
The game saw a late burst from Aizawl FC in the closing stages. Gokulam Kerala’s defence lost possession in a dangerous area, and the visitors capitalised as Malsawmzuala Tlangte fired a powerful shot past Rakshit Dagar for their first goal. Moments later, Aizawl struck again with a well-worked move as Rohmingthanga delivered an inviting cross from the left, and H Lalrempuia found space between two defenders to head home to give the match an exciting end.
Aizawl pushed numbers forward in search of an equaliser during seven minutes of added time, but in doing so left gaps at the back. Gokulam Kerala took full advantage, with Rahul Raju and Brown combining neatly before Rahul calmly slotted the ball past the goalkeeper to seal all three points.