Bagan bulldoze 10-man Bengaluru to claim maiden victory at the Blues' Fortress
JEJE LALPEKHLUA and Sony Norde scored a goal each against a 10-man Bengaluru FC as Mohun Bagan registered their first ever victory in the Blues' backyard in a result that has made significant changes to the nature of the I-League title race.
The home team made two changes in the starting line-up, bringing in Thoi Singh and Lalchuan Mawia into the starting line-up instead of Keegan Pereira and Sian Hanghal. Visiting Mohun Bagan featured just one change; Kean Lewis coming in to replace Bikramjit Singh in the right wing.
The game began with an early corner for BFC, when Sunil ran ahead up the left flank, with Kean Lewis tailing him. Nothing much came off it, and Bagan replied with a good ball to Sony Norde who shot it wide; the first in a series of badly aimed shots from the Haitian winger.
The visitors made it clear that they had come with an attacking frame of mind. A long ball from Luciano to Glen got intercepted. Then a Katsumi cross reached Jeje who got a header that went just above the target.
When Thoi Singh tried to run up the middle he was elbowed by Pronay Halder. Referee flashed the yellow card and the subsequent free-kick by Collins went straight to Bagan keeper Debjit.
Kean Lewis was especially eager to prove himself after getting his first start since the season opener against Aizawl FC. He ran straight into the BFC box, tried to get past Osano who eventually got the better of him.
The Blues quickly countered, running sending a high ball straight to Chhetri, who went down in the box. The referee Ajitkumar Lairenlakpam waved it off.
But Chhetri remained a threat. Minutes later he ended made his way past two defenders and sent in a shot that was low and on target but Debjit calmly collected it.
Bagan's attempts to find Glen with long balls wasn't getting much success in terms of finding an opening but it did get Osano carded. During an aerial duel he knocked too hard on Glen and got booked.
Then Kean Lewis sparked up again, moving into the middle, picking his way past a forest of defenders and letting fly but didn't find the target. Bengaluru immediately countered with a long ball up to Thoi Singh who shot it off target again.
Sunil Chhetri got into the action again, getting on the end of a cross from Beukhokhei and sending it ahead for Kim Song-yong who did not get to it.
At the death of the first half, Lalchuan Mawia picked up a card by bringing down Sony Norde, who was threatening to run past the BFC defensive line into space.
As the second half started, the tempo of the game was even higher. The period began with a couple of aggressive moves from Bengaluru FC that kept Bagan defence constantly under pressure.
Sunil Chhetri got a ball in to Beikhokhei who shot it wide. Then Bagan countered with Sony running up, finding Glen who pulled the trigger but once again missed the target. But the tale of the match got a massive twist when at the hour mark Lalchuan Mawia pulled an identical foul on Norde that had got him booked earlier, only harsher. The winger went down, the referee ran in and pulled out the second yellow, then showing Mawia the red card to issue marching orders. Westwood responded by putting Vineeth in replacing Kim Song-yong, but the damage was definitely done. Mohun Bagan pressed in.
Sony Norde moved up, finding Glen inside the box, who received the ball well, got past a couple of defenders, then pulled the trigger but the ball went agonizingly just wide. The Trinidad and Tobago striker went down clutching his head. BFC countered. Osano's long ball reached Vineeth, who ran ahead and fired on target but Debjit made a grab for it.
And then came the break-through. Sony Norde got the ball a bit deep, ran up, and found Jeje just outside the box. The striker turned, ran a couple of paces into the box, found himself some space and fired. The ball swung slightly, fooling keeper Amrinder, and fell into the lap of the net. The West Block was silenced while East Lower B exploded in joy. Mohun Bagan were one ahead, away at Bengaluru, for the first time. It was 72 minutes on the clock.
Bagan kept coming. Katsumi got the ball from midfield, ran up and took a hard-driven long ranger that took Amrinder by surprise. The keeper managed to dive to his right and deflect it, and Rino Anto shot it clear.
Westwood brought Seminlen Doungel on for Thoi Singh to create extra pressure on Bagan from the right wing. He got into action almost immediately, dribbling his way into the Bagan box, but when he took the shot it went just wide.
But the home team now were mounting pressure. A couple of free kicks went their way, including one from scoring range, but Debjit Majumder was swift enough to collect both of them into his chest.
BFC kept at it, playing passes in the midfield and desperately looking for an opening. Deep into added time, they got another free-kick. Vineeth took it and delivered it expertly into the box, but Collins headed it wide.
And it was here that Bagan got them again. Deep into added time, the visitors moved up the right flank when BFC had committed a lot of bodies forward. They switched flanks, found Sony Norde in vast empty space. The Haitian winger pulled the trigger, sending the ball straight in. Two nil. It was over.
As the final whistle came, the assembled Bagan supporters amidst the more than 17 thousand spectators brought the arena alive with chants. It was the first time they had overcome the Blues at home, and the win had given them a huge boost in their title bid. While Bengaluru FC, who have suffered their third defeat already, will be under pressure to outdo themselves in the second half of the season, now potentially in a position to play catch-up with the Mariners.
