Mohun Bagan enters the final beating Real Kashmir

by Rounak Majumdar August 22, 2019

The second semi-final of the Durand Cup hosted local favourite Mohun Bagan against Real Kashmir FC at the Vivekananda Yuba Bharati Stadium.

Mohun Bagan started the game on a positive note. Joseba Beitia helmed Mohun Bagan’s attack but failed to find the net on every given opportunity. At the 42nd minute, Gurjinder Kumar took a turn and crossed the ball to Salvador Perez Martinez, who calmly took his shot to give Mohun Bagan the much-needed breakthrough.

The second half saw some attacking football from both sides. Although Mohun Bagan slowed down gradually, possibly being content with their result. This match too saw a significant rise in action, after 90 minutes of play as the fourth official signalled for 4 minutes of added time. Just when Mohun Bagan fans were gearing up for the celebration, the match saw a repeat of the first semi-final between Quess East Bengal and Gokulam Kerala FC. At 90+3, Krizo equalised with a brilliant header from a cross put in by Loveday. Well, that signified that the match was far from being over.

Mohun Bagan started attacking right from the first minute of extra time. Soon enough, they regained their lead when Suhair, earlier brought in as a substitute in the 69th minute, scored in the 93rd minute. Mohun Bagan kept on attacking as V P Suhair hit the cross-bar with a pass from Imran Khan in the 110th minute. Two minutes later, another pass, this time from Francisco Gonzalez saw Suhair scoring his second goal of the match, giving the Mariners a comfortable lead of 3-1.

Thus Mohun Bagan comfortably win the semi-final eventually, where they will face Gokulam Kerala FC, who defeated Quess East Bengal earlier today. Quite interestingly, the final, scheduled on August 24, 1700 hrs onwards, will be a battle between a team who have the most number of appearances in Durand Cup final and a fresh team who are into the final for the first time.