East Bengal come from behind to thump young Bengaluru FC outfit

14th August 2019, VYBK Stadium, Kolkata: East Bengal emerged victoriously and booked a spot in the Semi-Finals of the prestigious Durand Cup. The courtesy of which goes to the young gun, Bidyashagar Singh who went on to score 2 goals for the Red & Gold brigade.

The match started with East Bengal creating chances and threatening the BFC defence. Within 10 minutes, East Bengal came very close to scoring as Pintu Mahata dribbled past the BFC keeper but failed to net the ball as he took a wide touch. East Bengal further received an indirect free-kick inside the BFC box but failed to capitalize as Dicka hit the wall set by the defending team. However, BFC acquired the pace and confidence soon and started launching attacks in the opposition half. In the 17th minute, Bengaluru FC went on to take the lead. Leon put in a neat through ball to Lalrindika in the box but his attempt hit the crossbar. Ajay Chhetri followed and guided the ball into the low right corner of the net to draw the first blood for Bengaluru FC. East Bengal didn’t lose their pace. They tried to come back into the match as they initiated several attacks after trailing by a goal. Bengaluru FC stood firm and restricted the home team from changing the tide. The first half concluded in Bengaluru FC’s favour by a solitary goal lead.

The second half commenced with the inclusion of the super-sub for East Bengal, Bidyashagar Singh, the 19-year-old Manipuri who went on to change the fortune for the Red & Gold brigade. In the 59th minute, Bidyashagar Singh scored the first goal for his side and made the scoreline even. Within the next 15 minutes, particularly at the 74th mark, Bidyashagar completed his brace and led East Bengal to victory. He made a solo run from the midfield and netted his second goal to double his team’s scoreline and ensure the last laugh for the Kolkata giants. However, he picked up a yellow card during the dying stages due to misconduct on the field. His game-changing heroics were enough to earn him the man of the match for the day. The match concluded 2-1, in favour of East Bengal, who came from behind to win against the young Bengaluru FC.

The Red & Gold brigade completed their group stage fixtures winning all of them and have proceeded to the Semi-Finals of the prestigious Durand Cup. On the other side, Bengaluru FC will lock horns against Jamshedpur FC for their last encounter on 17th of August, at the VYBK Stadium, Kolkata.