Kolkata giants East Bengal completed their second win in as many matches after they defeated Shillong Lajong 3-1 in an away fixture in the I-League on Thursday.
This win propelled them to the top spot in the points table. Jobby Justin scored two goals in the first-half and Bidyashagar Singh capped off with one for himself after the interval. For Shillong, Rakesh Pradhan scored the only goal in the 71st minute to stage a fightback but in the end, 3-1 remained the scoreline in favour of the Red and Gold brigade.
Although the hosts came up with a more beautiful brand of football, it was inexperience which stung them at the end of the day. The fact that they had nine players aged under 22 seems an interesting prospect for the future but at the end of the day, it proved to be a gamble not worth taking.
Shillong opted for an unchanged playing XI from their 2-0 win over Aizawl FC while Brandon Vanlalremdika over Tonight Longwah was preferred by East Bengal’s new Spanish gaffer Alejandro Menendez.
Shillong could have had a goal very early into the match after East Bengal custodian Rakshit Dagar was beaten easily by a free-kick from Samuel Lalmuanpuia but the joy was denied by the crossbar. Yet they came up with many more attacks but it was East Bengal who took the lead when Lalrindika Ralte’s free-kick found Justin who headed one safely into the net beating Shillong goalkeeper Neithoville Chalieu.
But Shillong, in a desperate bid to equalise launched a flurry of attacks and one of them happened in the 23rd minute when Samuel Lyngdoh’s powerful strike was safely dealt with by Dagar.
But again, the visitors grabbed a goal for themselves against the run of play when Justin once again found his name on the scoresheet.
East Bengal’s new Mexican striker Enrique Esqueda came up with a cross that struck a Shillong defender and went in the air. The ball then deflected off Esqueda who out it up for Justin to score and the Kerala striker didn’t disappoint, netting it past Neitho to double East Bengal’ s lead.
Shillong’s repeated efforts in scoring a goal eventually bore fruit when they reduced the deficit in the 71st minute when Rakesh Pradhan headed in one from a corner of Hnamte. But in a space of three minutes, Singh scored once again for the Kolkata club.
Image credit- Hindustan Times