I-League :Mohammedan Sporting vs Dempo SC

Match Review:

Mohammedan Sporting after a couple of draws looked to bag 3 points as they hosted Dempo SC on Sataurday evening at YBK stadium.

Coach under pressure to deliver started with Tolgay-Joshimar upfront while midfield was marshaled by Penn,Anthony, Isfaq ,Mashi and the backfour comprised of Lucioano-Mehraj ,Collin and Nirmal.

Dempo SC started with just one foreigner and beefed their line up with former Pailan Arrows young players as Prabir,Narayan Das,Pronoy Halder,Alwyn George and Holicharan Narzary all featured in their line up. 

Mohammedan Sporting started well as they pressed forward through Penn and Anthony Soren combining well on occassions as well as good overlapping play from Nirmal and Collin Abranches but Tolgay and Joshimar had a miserable evening as they failed to convert the moves to some attacking results in the final third. Penn and Soren did well to feed through balls to Tolgay but the out of form Aussie seemed to be scrambling for ideas to be in penetrative zone as his signature step-overs and inside outside moves were elementary for even young Narayan Das who easily choked the Aussie moves down the right.If Tolgay was miserable Joshimar wasn't far behind as both the strikers positioned themselves poles apart and the Dempo defenders had no problems dealing with one striker at a time as there was no combine link up play between the two strikers.Even if Joshimar used his height to control long balls but he had virtually no support to pass the loose second ball. However, the best chance of the match came to Tolgay Ozbey who controlled a ball in the six yard box and with only goalkeeper to beat volleyed the ball high and wide from the goal from an angle where it is virtually impossible to miss the target !!

Second half brought no changes to Mohammedan Sporting's fortune as Tolgay got another chance from a counter attack with one on one with just goalkeeper to beat but hit straight to him.

Dempo SC on the other hand lost Beto with injury within first 5 mins of the match and were playing with a young team. Jewel Raja and Cliford Miranda provided the push from Midfield as former Pailan duo of Alwyn George and Holicharan Narzary attacked from both flanks and Jeje played as a more central role.But Luciano and Mehraj used their physical presence to block any threat from Dempo as they missed their overseas players.

Holicharan made some good runs down the left flank and Alwyn used neat skills around the Mohammedan Sporting box but failed to test keeper Louis Barretto.

Coach Aziz made some changes as he was forced to bench Tolgay Ozbey and brought on Asim biswas and Mohammedan Sporting looked more dangerous on the attack. Asim weaved his way a couple of time through Dempo defence and created few openings and his remarkable left footer with 30 yards out was tipped over the bar by Dempo keeper.As Aziz desperate for a goal brought in Ajay Singh went on  4-3-3 formation to snatch a goal but created openings but failed to find the net.

With both teams missing few open chances the match ended in a goalless draw with the spectators gifted with a galore of misses which is becoming quite routine in Mohammedan Sporting games.

Coach Aziz need to work on his attacking options in final third as the team is playing well from defence to midfield but showing no penetrative threat in the final third.The fans would be looking for a more improved performance from their team as three consecutive draws could put pressure on Mohammedan Sporting as they are lined for more tough away games in coming legs of the I-League.

Final Score:Mohammedan Sporting 0-0 Dempo SC

I-League :28/11/2013:East Bengal vs United SC

Match Review:

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East Bengal faced their city rival United SC after the Big Derby with Mohun Bagan.After the hype and drama of the Mohun Bagan derby East Bengal were faced with a battle within a battle to overcome the complacency to put in a solid performance against United SC club who have grown a reputation of creating upsets to it's bigger city rivals.
East Bengal struggling with injuries to key players as Mehtab Hossian was sidelined along with James Moga.
Coach Armando Colaco kept the same back four as Uga and Arnab paired in the heart of defence and Soumik and Naoba played as side backs.Midfield was marshaled by Sueoka-Dika-Lobo-Mama and Khabra played as blocker. Sueoka played in a slight upfront role behind Chidi,who played as the lone striker.
On the other hand Coach Elcho Schattorie known for his tactical formations played with Anupam and Belo as central defence,Dhanachandra and Dipak Mondal as side backs.Hassan the Syrian defender was given a the role of a defensive screen between the back line and midfielders manly to counter the link up play of strong East Bengal attacking midfielders. Midfield was drafted with Tapan Maity as blocker,Vinneth down the middle behind Ranty,Snehasish down the left and Shouvik down the right.
As the match progressed East Bengal, looked to press forward as the midfield duo of Dika and Lobo combined well in occasions but Edeh Chidi was left without supporting striker and at times left to do more than enough  in the strong closing down formation of the United midfielders.
The moment of the game game in 25' when Chidi was released from midfield for a brilliant through ball from Sueoka as the striker rounded off keeper Ishant Debanth was clearly tripped in the box by the davancing Goalkeeper but to the surprise of the entire stadium,Chidi was booked for diving and no penalty was given.
But it was soon that East Bengal got their goal on 31' when Soumik Dey attacking from the left flank found Chidi Edeh unmarked on the left side of the box whose powerful grounder  beat the keeper and went through the net.
The first half ended without any further events as East Bengal had a few freekicks around the box but failed to convert them.
As the second half progressed United looked more of a transformed side as they took control of the midfield, Vinneth,Asif,Rafiq,Shouvik stringed numerous passes between themselves as they controlled the game and maintined very good shape,East Bengal was made to workl hard and fight for possession. Though Eric Brown's absence was felt since Ranty was not getting enough support around the box, still the midfield domination kept United in the game.Finally as they kept pressing forward they were rewarded with a goal from a corner around the hour mark as Dhanachandra Singh rose high and strong in the far post to head in a powerful goal to make 1-1.
As East Bengal kept losing the control of the match Armando was forced to change to 4-3-3 formation as he brought on Baljit and Semil Lane in the final quarter but United SC defence held strong especially Hassan and Belo showed good undertsanding and thwarted any threat from Chidi or Baljit.
The highlight of the game was surely the chances missed by East Bengal in the final 15 mins as the first chance fell to Suoeka who found himself with only keeper to beat with a qucik counter attack but surprisingly failed to hit the target as tried to aim for top net hit in high and wide and then came the miss that worth "2 points" for East Bengal. As the ball scrambled in United SC box Chidi's shot was blocked by his fellow striker Baljit Sahni and then Chidih just 6 yards out failed to put the ball in the net as his powerful aerial shot hit the cross piece and went out.
The match ended 1-1 with spoilt shared and East Bengal were left to rue their missed chances as they left 2 points from their home match at the crucial junction of I league after which they begin their away leg of I league playing 5away games.

Final Score:

East Bengal 1-1 United SCEdeh Chidi        Dhanachandra Singh

I-League 27/11/2013: Mohun Bagan VS Mohammedan Sporting

Match Review:

Just two days after the derby loss to arch rival East Bengal Mohun Bagan played their next match as they hosted Mohammedan Sporting  on a midweek "other derby" of Kolkata.Karim Bencherifa made three changes in his starting line up as Sandip replaced injured Shilton under the bar,Eche made his way in the team in place of Rowilson Rodriguez and Manish Bharghav came in place of Sabeeth.
Mohammedan Sporting coach Aziz started with Tolgay upfront as lone striker supported by Jerry Zirsanga and Ishfaq Ahmed on both flanks.Penn as playing from box to box midfielder's role supported by Rakesh Mashi as the blocker and Anthony Soren as a attacking medio.
Luciano-Mehraj,Collin Abranches-Nabi formed a formidable back four.Both teams played a failry open game for 90 minutes but off form Tolgay and a fitness deprived Odafa struggled to find their old form as both of them looked pretty ordinary.Tolgay looked out of ideas every time he had the ball while Odafa on the other end was looking like a old war horse with battle scars as he limped and crawled in the opponents half  for most of the match.Katsumi has not yet lived upto the expectation of his last season with ONGC as he failed to connect with Odafa. Mohammedan Sporting midfield looked more threatening as Ishfaq aand Anthony provided pace and momentum moving forward while Penn Orjii was talisman in Mohammedan Sporting midfield with neat skills and box to box midfield abaility.Rakesh Mashi did his defensive job well and occasionally pushed forward to give Mohammedan Sporting  attacks more options with his long range shooting skills.
As the match progressed Odafa played the ball to Eric as he unleashed a thundering strike with his left foot which flew past the cross bar,Odafa had few good chances inside the box but the striker who would have "proverbially" tore the net apart produced some uncharacteristic weak shots which were either wide or easily saved by goalkeeper Louis Barreto.Tolgay got one great chance to put his team on lead but he too drove it wide past the goalpost.
Probably the best chance of the match came to Ajay Singh in injury time of 90+ minutes as found empty space on the right side of the box on "one -on-one" situation  but he too shot it wide.Coach Aziz fielded a surprise selection in his starting XI as he left out Joshimar the seasons top scorer and preferred an off form and low on confidence Tolgay for 80 mins.
As both teams lost plenty opportunities the Coaches of both the teams will have lot to worry about their goal scoring options with Odafa still searching for mach fitness and some goals to get back to his lethal best and Australian Tolgay whose performance graph has been falling to an all time low since he left East Bengal two seasons back !

Final Score:

Mohun Bagan 0-0 Mohammedan Sporting

The Big Derby :Mohun Bagan vs East Bengal(24/11/2013)

Match Review:

Season's first derby had all the settings of a perfect showdown as Mohun Bagan hosted East Bengal in perfect November evening under the mystical lights at the monstrous Salt Lake stadium. 85000 odd attendance both teams armed to teeth and desperate to gain bragging rights of their arch rivals.
Mohun Bagan Coach Karim Bencherifa had to slot in someone for Echezona as the Nigerian defender missed out due to Red Card suspension from last game.
Karim Bencherifa known for his tactical shrewdness paired Aibor and Rowilson as central defenders and Pritam Kotal and Shouvik Ghosh were the side backs, his tactical move was to play Defender Kinshuk Debnath as a defensive blanket screen infront of the back fore to adsorb the attacking threat of Chidi and Sueoka .Denson played as a holding medio while Katsumi was playing down the left flank had a special assignement to stop East Bengal right back Naoba from overlapping and Sabeeth on the right flank,Odafa and Eric formed the upfront duo. Mohun Bagan got an earlky chance as Eric Muranda was relased with a brilliant through ball from Odafa from the midfield but the Kenyan  striker  failed to hit the target.
Mohun Bagan defense looked compact but East Bengal's midfield had more creative options in form of Sueka-Dika-Lobo while Khabra and Mehtab were brilliant defending as well as pushing forward whenevr needed to put Mohun Bagan defence under pressure.Lobo and Sueoka had some creative moments and presented good creative football in the midfield while Dika and Khabra provided threat with their off the ball runs to increase men while pushing and with their occasional long rangers.
Despite all odds and without the athletic defender Eche,Mohun Bagan defence looked pretty solid especillay Aibor was good with heading and covering to Edeh Chidi,Rowlison was good with his tackles and intercepts and the star performer was Pritam Kotal who had a busy day on his derby debut and showed expetional defending as well as his overlapping skills.Sueoka got the best chance for East Bnegal as he found the goalkeeper at his mercy with one-on-one situation but an alert Shilton Paul rushed forward to deny Riuji Sueoka a definite goal
With Chidi stifled for space East Bengal looked to press forward with their attacks from both flanks as Dika and Lobo looked threatninng and they took control of the midfield.Odafa and Eric had few odd chances but their fitness was under microscope as they failed to create any clear cut openings with close marking from Arnab and Mehtabs' double covering. As first half ended goalless second half started with more open play as both sides looked to steal  goal. Second half saw some changes, as Mama came on for an injured Tulunga and then came the moment of the match ! Dika found some open space 30 yards out as Denson failed to closed down on him and the Mizo wonderboy unleashed a powerful left footer which dipped to perfection as a diving Shilton failed to punch it over-A world Class Goal and the moment of individual briiliance that made all the difference. Odafa too had his moment as he shrugg off a challenge from Opara and went into the box with the entire East Bnegal defence trying to stop him eventually smothered his way through the defenders and found himself infront of the Goalkeeper but failed to score as he hit the ball at an easy height for goalkeeper Abhjit Mondal to save it.
Mohun Bagan Coach tried all his tricks to find an equalizer as Ram Malik and Shankar Oraon were thrown off but East Bengal managed to hold off to the lead and the Ferguson of Indian football  Mr.Armando Colaco tasted his first Kolkata Derby win in his first match as the Coach of East Bengal.
Both team played good football and the goalkeepers of both the teams had a busy day under the bar but at the end Dika's wonder goal was the highlight of the game as the young Mohun Bagan team showed a brave effort with young brigade but had to end in a losing side ! A great Derby game for the spectators and 03 important points for East Bengal was testified by Dika's world class goal .

Final Score:

Mohun Bagan 0-1 East Bengal                           

                              (Lalrindika Ralte)

I-League:23/11/2013: Mohameddan Sporting vs Churchill Brothers

Match Review:

As I league returned after the International FIFA match day break the action shifted to YBK stadium where Mohammedan Sporting Club hosted Churchill Brothers.Churchill Brothers have been a shadow of their last season and has done little to look like defending champions with no wins in 8 games and languishing at the bottom of the table.
Mohammedan Sporting Club was bolstered by inclusions of their new recruits of Ishfaq,Mehraj but the poor form of Tolgay and Joshimar remained a matter of concern for the coach.
Churchill looked for a change in fortunes as they handed debut to their Syrian striker Yasser Shahen who looked impressive and played some good one-two play and combined well with Bineesh Balan.
Mohammedan Sporting Club's fortune depended a lot on Penn Orji  the engine of the team as made some good runs down the middle but failed combine with the striking duo upfront and lacked finishing in the attacking third.Israel Gurung  and Ishfaq tried to get the flanks moving but Churchill had a formidablke midfield force led by Lenny and supported by Micky which choked the Mohammedan Sporting attack and cut the supply line for Tolgay and Joshimar de Silva.
On the other hand ,Churchill T.D Subhash Bhowmik tried all trick in his bag to create some opening but Mohammedan Sporting defence stood firm as Luciano-Mehraj-Gagandeep did well to hold off any threat.
The match left much disappointment to the home fans as their team looked lacklustre throughout 90 mins barring few moments of brilliance from Penn.
A goalless draw and a dull encounter  gave one point each as Mohammedan Sporting Club remained on 7th position with 11 points. Churchill have much work to do as they head for the Christmas break for the I league and they need to get going or else it could be a marathon climb for the defending champions in this edition of I league.
Final Score:

Mohammedan Sporting Club 0-0 Churchill Brothers

I-League 2013-14:06/11/2014 Mohammedan Sporting vs Mumbai FC

Match Review:

Mohammedan Sporting hosted Mumbai FC at YBK Stadium in the 9th round of I League encounter before I league goes into the mini break.It was a pretty dull game by all means as both sides displayed some listless football that lacked usual flare and pace.
Mohammedan Sporting fielded a strong squad,though Tolgay was benched due to his poor run of form.Sandip,GagandeepAnthony Soren and Luciano formed a solid back four as Rakesh Mashi played as defensive screen while Penn Orji,Collin Abranches and Israel Gurung were the attacking midfield options and Ajay Singh paired with Joshimar upfront.
Mumbai FC coach Khaleed Jameel had the Afghan force in Mumbai's foreigners lineup as he started with all four of them with Haroon Amiri playing in defence and Ahmad Hatife in the central midfield .Sandjar Ahmadi and Barkatzai paired upfront.
Luciono and Anthony Soren played an inspiring game as they shielded off all attacks from the towering Afghan forwards.Penn was good on the ball and was the fulcrum of Mohammedan Sporting force from the midfield while Israel Gurung and Collin Abranches kept the attack through the flanks going.
Mohammedan Sporting broke the deadlock on 34th minute when Mohammedan Sporting was awarded a penalty and Joshimar made no mistake to convert it from the spot.
Mumbai FC tried to come back into the match and looked dangerous on odd movement as Barkatzai and Sandjar combined well and took few chances but Mohammedan GK made some good saves to deny Mumbai FC a chance to equalize.
Luciano was particularly impressive with his heading and tackling and his presence and leadership gave solidarity to Mohammedan back-line and looked impregnable.Even the sharp moves of and good one two play between the Afghan forwards were intercepted well and there was good covering and blocking by Sandeep Sangha and Anthony Soren.
Penn and Israel missed few easy chances to increase the lead while second half substitute,Tolgay's horror run of frm continued.The Aussie looked short of confidence and lacked imagination in his play and made no impact with whatsoever as his trademark run down the flank or touch off the ball eluded him for sometime now. Ishfaq too looked rusty and Manish Maithani made no telling contribution being brought on.
Mohammedan managed to hold on to the slender lead as they closed game with valuable 3 points.

Final Score:

Mohammedan Sporting 1-0 Mumbai FC

Joshimar(penalty)-33'

Wim Koevermans names squad for November Friendlies VS Phillipines and Nepal.

National Coach Wim Koevermans has announced his squad of 21 Players for India’s two International Friendlies which are scheduled in November 2013. India first play Philippines on November 15 followed by Nepal on November 19.

The list is as follows:

GOALKEEPERS: Karanjit Singh (Salgaocar SC), Subhashish Roychowdhury (Dempo SC), Arindam Bhattacharya (Churchill Brothers).

DEFENDERS: Denzil Franco (Churchill Brothers), Nicolau Colaco (Salgaocar SC), Arnab Mondal (East Bengal), Aibhorlang Khongjee (Mohun Bagan), Raju Gaikwad (East Bengal), Gurjinder Kumar (Pune FC), Narayan Das (Dempo SC).

MIDFIELDERS: Mehtab Hossain (East Bengal), Lenny Rodrigues (Churchill Brothers), Lalrindika Ralte (East Bengal), Arata Izumi (Pune FC), Francis Fernandes (Salgaocar SC), Clifford Miranda (Dempo SC), CK Vineeth (United SC, Victorino (Sporting Clube de Goa).

FORWARDS: Dawson Fernandes (Sporting Clube de Goa), Sunil Chhetri, Robin Singh (both Bengaluru FC).
STANDBYES: Shilton Paul, Rowilson Rodrigues, Gurwinder Singh, Shouvik Ghosh, Rocus Lamare, Malswamtulunga, Tsewang Karma, Jeje Lalpekhlua, Denson Devdas.

Source:AIFF media

I-League:02/11/2014:United SC vs Churchill Brothers

Match Preview:

After a loss in the previous game United SC looked to turned their fortune as they hosted Churchill Brothers.
Both teams are having a poor run of form in I league,Churchill especially after a poor opening run of games and Churchill TD Subhash Bhowmik returned to Churchill dug out after the success of last season.
On the other hand United missed out few of their key players in the form of Lalkamal,Rafiq and Sangram.
As the game started Churchill looked to take control of the game as United were forced to defend deep in their own half.The midfield trio of Alesh-Bineesh and Lenny combined well and used the flanks as well as Denzil overlapped mostly from left and Churchill looked dangerous from onset as their forwards Hugo and Balwant looked threatening. Hugo had a few chances early in the game.
Hugo was impressive with his deft touches and neat chips and showed good combination play with Bineesh and could have opened the goal mouth early.
The opening goal came at 25' as Alesh sprinted down the left flank and chipped the ball beautifully into the United SC box and an unmarked Balwant headed in the first goal.United looked to build up play through Vinneeth-Shouvik and Eric but the defensive screen of Churchill of Lenny and Micky jelled well to thwart any threatening attack of United. 
Ranty was marked closely by Hammad and Ravannan and they used double covering to deny Ranty any space to twist or turn.With compact defensive formation as Churchill midfielders dropped deep to defend in numbers,United SC lost the attacking ideas in the attacking third as their strikers were choked for space and the defenders closed on well.Though Shouvik and Vinneth tried to use the width to deliver balls to Ranty and Eric the Churchill defenders used their height well to deny any scoring opportunities.Churchill led 1-0 at the break.
After the half time,Churchill scored their second goal through Balwant and made it 2-0 as United were left with a mountain to climb to salvage anything from the game.
As United pushed forward they were rewarded with a few corners and goal came from one of the corner as goalkeeeper Arindam failed to clear the ball and Vineeth picked up the ball in the commotion and tuned it in to Churchill net to reduce the margin.Elcho made some tactical change bringing in Jayanta Sen and young Biswajit Biswas and United looked a change side.Churchill looked to sit on their glory of two goals as they looked to defend the lead.United were finally rewarded wth an equalizer as Ranty Martins headed in a perfect cross from Eric Broen from the left to make it 2-2.Jayanta Sen's arrival added solidity to United midfield as Jayanta-Vineeth and Shouvik took control of midfield and Churchill looked as if they lost the plot.
Substitute Biswajit came close to scoring as his shot went wide and finally United SC completed their amazing comeback as they scored the third goal from their talisman striker Ranty Martins- a corner from Bisawajit was met perfectly at the first post and the ball was glanced to the back of the net as a hapless Arinadam and Churchill brothers stood in disbelief.Score 3-2 and with couple of minutes remaining,frustration crept in Churchill camp as Denzil Franco was shown a direct Red Card for a rash tackle.United SC were happy to retain possession and close the game on a high with a 3-2 win being 2-0 down.

Tactical Note:

Churchill managed a two goal lead through brilliant holding and formation play but they seemed to lose the plot as the game progressed.Churchill neither went all out to increase the lead or closed the game with retaining and defending strongly.The players were coaxed into comfort zone with the 2-0 lead as post break United showed some intent to get back into the game.
Elcho Schattorie triumphed over Subhash Bhowmik in the tactical fight as his second half substitution of bringing in Jayanta and Biswajit worked beautifully as they took control of the midfield.United were impressive in their corners and set piece as two of their corners came from the eight corners they managed to win. 

Final Score:

United SC 3-2 Churchill Brothers(Vineeth,Ranty-02) (Balwant-02)

I-League 2013-14: 01/11/2014: East Bengal vs Salgaocar FC

Match Review :

East Bengal's roller coaster ride continues as they slumped to another home defeat to Goan side Salgaocar FC at Kalyani stadium on Friday.East Bengal was shocked early by quick Salgaocar attack as they conceded two early goals and were 2-0 within 10 minutes of the match.

The first goal came at 8 minutes when a quick counter attack move from midfield saw Darrel Duffy finding empty space near EB box and his low drive was saved by Abhijit Mondal but the rebound fell nicely to the foot of right winger Karma Thiley who placed it neatly at the back of the net. Before East Bengal could recover from this shock East Bengal's midfield again caught napping and the left the flood gates open and Salgaocar medio Francis Fernandes had acres of space to surge forward and brilliantly lobbed the ball at the back of the end over an advancing Abhjit Mondal.The East Bengal players and fans were deflated being 2-0 down so early.

Both the goals contributed to lapse of East Bengal midfield as their attacking and holding midfielders could not hold the shape of the team and were scattered with poor off the ball positioning.

There was no attempt to close down on the attacking Salgaocar midfielders and attacking midfielders failed to track back as a result the Salgaocar midfielders dominated midfield play through out the 90 minutes.

Salgaocar Coach Derek Perreira normally plays a very solid formation in away game with 4-5-1 formation.Rocus Lamare and Gilbert normally plays as holding medio while Frances Fernandes and Karma Tsewang along with their U-23 player Clifim Dias were attacking options and also linked up as attacking wing halfs to assist lone striker Darrel Duffy.Chika Wali and Augustin Fernandes forms a solid combo at the back.

Salgaocar displayed perfect away game discipline being solid at the back,increasing men in midfield to deny any free space to opponent,attacking midfielders overlapping perfectly,holding midfielders maintaining minimum gap with the backline while defending and they looked solid for most part of the game.

On the other hand East Bengal midfield was least impressive as they allowed too much space in midfield,lost possession easily, they failed to snatch and closing down of their attacking midfielders was non existent.

Kevin Lobo and Lalrindika managed to create few openings down the flanks but their "blow hot-blow cold" attacking duo of Moga and Chidi were closely marked by Salgaocar defenders and denied them any space and time to turn or take a shot.

Moga playing as the lead striker had few good chances but his poor touch and control let him down.Chidi too searching for his golden form of last season had a few cracks at goal and they sailed well over the cross bar.East Bengal went 2-0 down at half time.

Post break as East Bengal looked to get back into the game,East Bengal Coach Falopa desperately in search of some goals brought all his attacking options in form of Joaquim Abranches and Baljit.But it showed no change in fortune as Francis Fernandes sprinted down an empty right flank crossed the ball in and  Gilbert Oliviera headed the ball back to the path of Clifton Dias who made it 3-0 for Salgaocar.

Down and out East Bengal finally got one goal back when Moga out jumped his marker from a curling ball down the left flank from Kevin Lobo and headed the ball at the back of the net to make it 3-1.With a goal back East Bengal showed some urgency and with the substitution of Chidi with Semin Lane showed some spring in the stride of East Bengal as they pressed hard for another goal.The post 70 minutes game saw a changed East Bengal side as they had series of chances around the Salgaocar goal and a number of corners as the ball flew past the Salgaocar goal every now and then. Finally the pressure paid off as Semil Lane's low shot from the right side of the box beat GK Karanjit Singh git the base of far post and went back into the back of the net.3-2 East Bengal..come back was on with approximately 15 minutes of play left as the fans were gripped in anticipation.

Derek Perreira brought in  his reserve foreigner Claude Gnakpa in place of Duffy who almost put the encounter when he got an open chance in a quick counter attack but Abhjit Mondal covered his near post well and saved the powerful shot.East Bengal pressed forward looking to snatch one point  as Baljit and Khabra tried a few long rangers and were close but not close enough to earn them a point. As the 4th referee showed 5 minutes it raised hopes,but Salgaocar managed to hold on to the slender lead and dashing East Bengal hopes for a comeback and finally the game ended in 3-2 loss for the home team.

Tactical Note:

Salgaocar Coach showed perfect acumen and brilliant game reading to create a crowded midfield formation 4-5-1 as they took the control of the game from onset. The 5 midfielders outplayed the free flowing East Bengal game and also curtailed the Lobo-Dika creativity down the middle as a result the strikers were cut off from any midfield supply.

Coach Falopa needs to rethink his strategy  on how to use Chidi and Moga.Chidi needs to be used as their no.1 attacking option and he seems to be struggling to play his natural game as a withdrawal forward behind Moga.East Bengal need to co ordinate the wing play of their side backs and while the side backs are overlapping the midfielders are not tracking back deep enough to plug the gaps and as a result they got caught on the counter attack.

Final Score:

East Bengal 2-3 Salgaocar FC(J.Moga, S.Lane)  (Karma T. Francis Fernandes,Clifton Dias)