East Bengal edges past Mohun Bagan in season’s first derby

Kingfisher East Bengal emerges victorious in the season’s opening derby against their arch-rivals McDowell Mohun Bagan. The scoreline read 1-0 in favour of the red-and-gold brigade as referee Pratap Singh blew the final whistle at the Yuba Bharati Krirangan on the Sunday afternoon.

The high-voltage encounter between the oldest rivals in Indian football never lived up to expectations on the field as the players from both the teams put on display some lackluster football. The high amount of pressure was quite evident on the players as there was a flurry of miss passes accompanied by some wayward shooting from both the teams. As a result the first-half turned out to be a battle of midfield with both teams choosing to sit back and play safe. Still there were scoring opportunities for sides but there were some good saves from the keepers of both the sides. East Bengal, who enjoyed a possession of 65% throughout the first 45 minutes, came closest to open the scoring when Bagan custodian made a good save from Ryuji Sueoka minutes before the lemon break.

As the match went into the second half, Mohun Bagan tried to make come back into the match with their counter attacking style of football. But the East Bengal defense, especially custodian Avijit Mondal, stood tall against any threats from opponent’s ace striker Odafa Okoli. The moment of the match came in the 77th  minute when Lalrindika Ralte took his chance from the distance after receiving the ball from Harmanjyot Singh Khabra. Once the ball found its way into the back of the net the East Bengal supporters who thronged to the Yuba Bharati Krirangan burst into wild celebrations leaving the section of Mohun Bagan supporters absolutely shocked. However Dika was yellow carded by the referee as he took off his shirt out sheer joy.

As the final whistle went off, East Bengal’s lately appointed coach showed his respect for the supporters as he went down on his knees with his arms stretched facing the East Bengal crowd. Nothing can get better for a coach who starts his campaign with a win and that too against the team’s arch-rivals. This will surely inject in a lot of confidence in the East Bengal camp who are in pursuit of the I-league that has eluded them for a number of years.

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About Argha Ghosh

An ardent follower of sports and die-hard Manchester United fan, Argha's ultimate dream is to watch a Manchester derby from the Stretford End at the Old Trafford.