I-League 2017: East Bengal 2-1 Bengaluru FC - 5 Talking Points
It was East Bengal who came out on top as they faced the high-flying Bengaluru FC at the Barasat Stadium in Kolkata today.
The home side won the game 2-1, thanks to goals from Wedson Anselme and Robin Singh. It was the defending champions who took the lead through an effervescent CK Vineeth, but they were pegged back in the second half and the Bengal giants took home all three points.
The win sees them in the 2nd position on the table, on 10 points, just two behind eternal rivals Mohun Bagan. Bengaluru, on the other hand, have 9 points from 4 games and are third on the table.
They lost to the Bengal giants for the first time in two years, and despite winning their first three games, looked unsettled for almost the entire 90 minutes. Albert Roca and his men presented numerous opportunities to the home side, and were lucky just to concede two, thanks, in part, to some wasteful finishing and Amrinder Singh’s heroics under the bar.
Here are the five things we learnt from the top-of-the-table clash:
#1 Bengaluru FC look defensively weak against the counter
Bengaluru FC may have one of the best squads in the country, and may have garnered all 9 points prior to this, but they can be caught out by teams that are willing to work hard. The home side played counter attacking football today, and Willis Plaza and Nikhil Poojary repeatedly caught the opposition’s defence out.
Juan Antonio Gomes was especially susceptible to East Bengal’s pace, and Mohun Bagan coach Sanjoy Sen must have taken notes. The Red and Gold brigade were outrageously poor with their finishing today, but the likes of Darryl Duffy and Sony Norde will be salivating at the prospect of facing such a tardy backline.