Kozhikode: Defending champions Aizawl FC defeated top division newcomers Gokulam Kerala FC 2-0 in an I-League encounter here on Sunday.
An own goal by Gokulam defender Daniel Addo (45th minute) put Aizawl in the lead right at the stroke of half-time.
Andrei Ionescu doubled the lead for the visitors with a fine strike in the 52nd minute.
The defending champions have now jumped two spots to the fifth position on the I-league ladder with 10 points from five matches.
They are right behind Mohun Bagan who also have 10 points. But the Kolkata giants sit a rung above the defending champions due to a superior goal difference.
Gokulam slipped a spot to the ninth position, just above bottom-placed Churchill Brothers.
The I-League debutants are on four points from six matches, a tally similar to eighth placed Chennai City FC.
Gokulam however, trail their fellow southerners due to an inferior goal difference.
