Dominant West Bengal secures 5-0 Victory, Haryana picks a come-from-behind win

by Chittu Shetty January 12, 2023

Haryana picked a sensational come-from-behind win while West Bengal secured a comfortable 5-0 victory over Madhya Pradesh on match day 3 of Group 4 matches of the Hero Santosh Trophy,

The first match of the day saw West Bengal take on Madhya Pradesh, with the former showcasing why they are the favorites for the competition. West Bengal troubled the Madhya Pradesh defense on numerous occasions, with their first goal coming in the 14th minute. Robi Hansda rose highest to head in a cross from Dipak Rajak on the wings, giving his team the lead.

Eight minutes later, Dipak Rajak sent in a low cross from just outside the box and captain Naro Shrestha arrived late at the far post to smash it in, making the score 2-0. The home team continued to press forward, and just before halftime, substitute Vivek Singh sent in a looping ball into the box where the unmarked captain Naro headed it down into the net, increasing the lead to 3-0 at halftime.

In the second half, West Bengal continued their dominance and in the 54th minute, Totan Das received the ball just outside the box and unleashed a powerful curler shot that nestled into the top right corner to make it 4-0. In the 63rd minute, substitute Rakesh Dhara received the ball 30 yards out and made a driving run into the box before cutting it back across where an alert Robi tapped it in to make the final score 5-0. With this win, West Bengal tops the group with all 3 wins in group 4.

The second match of the day saw Haryana take on Chhattisgarh, and it was a tightly contested match throughout the first half. Both teams had their chances, but neither was able to break the deadlock. Haryana had the better of the attacks, but the Chhattisgarh defense held strong.

In the second half, Chhattisgarh came out with renewed energy and made an impact quickly. A cross from the left wing was sent behind the Haryana defense that central defenders failed to clear away, allowing Abhay Yadav to make a late run and smash it past an onrushing goalkeeper to put Chhattisgarh in the lead.

But Haryana wasn’t done yet, they upped the tempo in search of an equalizer, and in the 82nd minute, a freekick was won just outside the box, Haryana forward Hitesh Kadian stepped up and struck a powerful shot that deflected off the back of one of the defenders in the wall to sneak into the net, with the goalkeeper stranded.

Just 2 minutes later, substitute Pradip Kumar received the ball from the middle, and with space in front of him, he unleashed a thundering strike from around 35 yards out that beat a full-stretched goalkeeper and nestled into the top left corner. Haryana completed the comeback and secured the 2-1 victory. With this win, Haryana sits in 3rd place in group 4, 3 points behind the leader with two games to go.

In the end, it was a great day of football with two teams showing their dominance in their respective matches. West Bengal and Haryana both came out victorious and are now looking forward to their next matches.

Also Read: Arif Shaikh’s Late Goal Seals Victory for Maharashtra Over Chhattisgarh

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