I-League: Round 15 Review – East Bengal take control of the title race
Overview
Even with more than half of their campaign still remaining, Sunday’s match away at Bengaluru FC was a must-win for East Bengal as they trailed the league leaders by 12 points. Bengaluru hadn’t lost at home and were on a four-match winning run but the Kolkata giants produced a great away performance to win 2-0. They are nine points off the top now with three games in hand and with the squad that they have, East Bengal will be confident of winning their first title since 2004. But in the second half of the season the red-and-gold brigade must find consistency, something which they have lacked in the I-League for the last ten months.
While East Bengal have a title challenge to look forward to, arch-rivals Mohun Bagan are back in crisis again as they were beaten 1-0 at home by a young and inexperienced Dempo outfit. Following the 4-0 thumping of United SC in round 13, it looked like the Mariners turned a corner but with just one point in the last two ganmes Karim Bencherifa’s job unsafe is again while skipper Odafa Okolie’s future is also in doubt as his personal tally now reads 1 goal in seven matches. The 3-0 win over Aryan in the Calcutta Football League will give some confidence to the squad but the real test is on Saturday against Pune FC in the I-League.
Another Kolkata giant, Mohammedan Sporting also lost in this round as they were beaten 3-1 by rock-bottom Churchill Brothers in Goa. That result cost Moshood Bola Abdulaziz his job and Sanjoy Sen has been appointed as the new Mohammedan coach. Sen guided the black and whites to I-League promotion earlier this year and now must bring out the best from a squad that has been underperforming. Sen’s former club United SC were also beaten at the weekend as Pune FC triumphed 2-1 in Kalyani thanks to a brace from Mustapha Riga. Bengaluru’s defeat saw Pune close the gap at the top to three points and the Red Lizards still have a game in hand.
But Pune are still only third as they remain behind Sporting Clube, who thumped Shillong Lajong 5-1, the joint-biggest win this season. Sporting’s Ogba Kalu became the first player to score a hattrick as the Flaming Oranje recorded their third straight win. Given the competitiveness in this season’s I-League, any small run of wins makes a big difference in the table so even the modest squad of Sporting Clube are in the title race. In the final game of the round Mumbai FC held Rangdajied United to a 1-1 draw in Shillong.
Results
Sporting Clube 5-1 Shillong Lajong; Mohun Bagan 0-1 Dempo; United SC 1-2 Pune FC; Bengaluru FC 0-2 East Bengal; Churchill Brothers 3-1 Mohammedan Sporting; Rangdajied United 1-1 Mumbai FC
Game of the round
Bengaluru FC 0-2 East Bengal
Coming into this weekend Bengaluru were six points clear at the top but the game against East Bengal was always going to be their biggest test especially as they had lost the reverse fixture 2-0 in Kalyani earlier in the season. All the pressure was on East Bengal though and to make their task tougher, captain Mehtab Hossain and Nigerian centre-back Uga Okpara were unavailable due to injury. But Armando Colaco’s side showed their experience as they capitalised on the absence of Bengaluru’s suspended English central defender John Johnson by consistently playing long balls towards their strikers Edeh Chidi and James Moga.
It wasn’t pleasing on the eye but effective as East Bengal went in front through Moga who got behind the Bengaluru FC defence with debutant goalkeeper Soram Porei also out of position and found the back of the net. The red-and-gold brigade had plenty of other chances to increase their advantage but were wasteful and at the other end rode their luck a bit as Bengaluru hit the woodwork through Sean Rooney. But overall East Bengal deservingly led at the break as they limited Bengaluru to very few clear cut chances and often exposed the home team’s defence.
In the second half East Bengal were happy to concede possession and play completely on counter attacks. The Kolkata side put plenty of men behind the ball and at times invited pressure but their all-Indian back four had a solid game while Gurpreet Sandhu also made a couple of vital saves. For Bengaluru Siam Hanghal hit the woodwork but they never really enjoyed a sustained spell of pressure and at times were also frustrated by East Bengal’s time wasting. Then in the 81st minute Chidi sealed the points with a powerful shot that beat Porei in his near post as Bengaluru suffered their first home defeat.
The performance and result was proof of the strength in depth that the East Bengal squad has as they managed to beat the league leaders despite the absence of a couple of key players while Lalrindika Ralte also went off injured in the first half. Compare that with Bengaluru, whose defence at times was left completely exposed because of the absence of Johnson. It was also a rare fixture where Chidi and Moga exhibited a good understanding while stand-in skipper Harmanjot Khabra had a great game in the middle of the park and thus the absence of Mehtab wasn’t felt. East Bengal still have a lot of hard work ahead but with 10 of their remaining 13 games in Kolkata, the title is theirs to lose.
Result of the round
Sporting Clube 5-1 Shillong Lajong
While all the focus was on the Bengaluru FC – East Bengal game this weekend, this clash in Goa between Sporting Clube and Shillong Lajong was equally important as one of the teams had the chance to close the gap at the top. Neither Sporting Clube nor Lajong possess squads capable of winning the title but since no club has been able to run away with the league yet, these two teams were very much in the title mix coming into this matchday. Both sides had won their last two games with Lajong having won on their last two trips to Goa.
After 14 minutes it looked like Lajong were on course for their third straight win in Goa as Japanese Taisuke Matsugane gave them an early lead following a mistake in the Sporting Clube defence. The hosts thought they were level when Ogba Kalu found the back of the net with an overhead kick from a corner but for some reason the assistant referee’s flag went up and the goal was ruled out. But minutes later the Nigerian got on the scoresheet to restore parity as he headed home Mauvin Borges’ cross.
Sporting Clube ended the half strongly but the sides went into the break all square. In the second half it could have been anybody’s game but inspired by Kalu, the Goan side took their game to another level and ran out comfortable 5-1 winners. Kalu scored twice more to complete his hattrick, the first by any player in this campaign, with his runs from midfield giving Lajong a nightmare throughout the game. Liberian-Australian Boima Karpeh and India international Victorino Fernandes completed the rout and the margin of victory could have been bigger.
Both Sporting Clube and Lajong have exceeded expectations with the energy and youthfulness of their squads giving many teams a headache this season. But the big difference in this game was the power and experience of Kalu. A few seasons back the former Churchill Brothers and Dempo man was the best medio in the I-League and the performance in this game was his best in a long time. Despite the heavy defeat Lajong remain in the top four and they wouldn’t have expected to be in this position after 14 games. Meanwhile Sporting Clube can still dream of winning the league but they are already winning many admirers because of their attractive style of play under Spanish coach Oscar Bruzon.
Best Players
Foreigner – Ogba Kalu (Sporting Clube)
The Nigerian scored the first hattrick of the Airtel I-League and was unfortunate to see his sensational overhead kick get disallowed. Kalu has the second-best minutes-per-goal ratio despite playing in midfield and will now aim for consistency in the second half of the season also.
Indian – Harmanjot Singh Khabra (East Bengal)
The East Bengal vice-captain lead by example in club captain Mehtab’s absence as he was a commanding presence in midfield. Khabra expertly protected an all-Indian backline by making several tackles and winning the second balls.
Controversy
Crowd trouble in the I-League is generally associated with fans of Kolkata clubs but on this matchday some Bengaluru FC supporters were guilty of throwing bottles towards East Bengal players. The Bengaluru faithful were left frustrated by both the happenings in the match and the time wasting antics of East Bengal players. As a result Bengaluru were fined 20,000 and it also showed that the passion for the I-League’s newest club is growing. However let’s hope ugly scenes like throwing missiles are not repeated and it was encouraging to see the fans stop once their own players were pleading for peace.
The Table
| Team | Played | Won | Drawn | Lost | Points | GD |
| Bengaluru FC | 14 | 8 | 3 | 3 | 27 | +9 |
| Sporting Clube | 13 | 7 | 3 | 3 | 24 | +8 |
| Pune FC | 13 | 7 | 3 | 3 | 24 | +7 |
| Shillong Lajong | 14 | 5 | 5 | 4 | 20 | -3 |
| East Bengal | 11 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 18 | +6 |
| Salgaocar | 13 | 5 | 3 | 5 | 18 | 0 |
| United SC | 14 | 4 | 6 | 4 | 18 | -1 |
| Mumbai FC | 14 | 3 | 7 | 4 | 16 | -1 |
| Dempo | 14 | 3 | 7 | 4 | 16 | -3 |
| Mohun Bagan | 14 | 3 | 6 | 5 | 15 | -1 |
| Mohammedan Sporting | 13 | 3 | 4 | 6 | 13 | -4 |
| Rangdajied United | 14 | 2 | 6 | 6 | 12 | -10 |
| Churchill Brothers | 13 | 2 | 4 | 7 | 10 | -6 |