I-League 2017-18: Minerva Punjab FC make Mohun Bagan pay the price for lacklustre defence, hold them to 1-1 draw

DEFENSIVE MISTAKES MADE Mohun Bagan pay a big price on the opening night of the I-League 2017-18 season.

A late equalizer by Minerva Punjab FC held the Mariners to a 1-1 draw at Ludhiana, causing them to drop two precious away points.

The match got off to a slow start, with the home team's star striker from Bhutan, Chencho Gyeltshen, making the earliest moves in the game.

Neither team was creating many chances early on, and although Mohun Bagan got some corners early on, the MPFC defence held fast to their shape. Half an hour in, Mohun Bagan's Haitian international Sony Norde almost found the mark with a free kick but missed out by inches.

Minutes later, a positioning error from Dano caused him to miss out on a headed clearance, leaving Sony Norde with lots of space inside the box but MPFC keeper Arshdeep Singh ran out to grab the ball for himself.

Just before half-time came the best moment of the game. Sony Norde had briefly changed flanks and he got the ball in his own half, made a darting run forward, beating three defenders all the way into the box. He took the shot from a difficult angle and Arshdeep could not judge the incoming ball. The ball went into the net and Mohun Bagan had taken the lead.

Super @sony_norde_16 's solo goal against Minerva Punjab FC#HeroILeague #MPFCvMB @Mohun_Bagan pic.twitter.com/5KyjnT8COW

— Hero I-League (@ILeagueOfficial) November 25, 2017

The Mariners came out in the second half with the lead but it was the Minervans who had the initiative; they created chances early on and almost equalized when MB keeper Shilton Paul left the goal open, but Abhishek failed to tap it home. Minutes later, Lago hit the near post while trying to convert a corner.

Mohun Bagan created chances too. Their golden opportunity to double the lead went begging when Sheikh Faiaz, who had come on as a substitute for Chesterpaul Lyngdoh, failed to finish from close range when a Sony Norde cross beat the keeper and rolled past the goalmouth.

But in the 89th minute, Minerva Punjab finally got their equalizer when Moinuddin Khan scored from a set-piece thanks to a complete failure by the Mohun Bagan defence in marking the opoonents in their own box. The late equalizer ensured that the visitors had no time to get another goal; they had to be satisfied with a draw.

While the Minerva Punjab management will be happy with this result, the Mohun Bagan head coach Sanjoy Sen has much to worry about as he has to take on East Bengal in a Kolkata Derby in a few days with an attack overly reliant on Sony Norde and a defence that looks half-baked at best.

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