Win keeps East Bengal in hunt
Super-sub Esqueda scores a brace to down Neroca 2-1 as Kolkata giants chase elusive title
KOLKATA : The blemish came in the third minute. But a resolute East Bengal kept pushing and scored twice in the second half through headers from substitute Enrique Esqueda to keep I-league title hopes alive and begin their sequence of four games in 11 days with a 2-1 win against Neroca FC.
After 14 matches, East Bengal have 28 points, three more than Neroca who have played two rounds more.
Chencho Gyeltshen, last season’s nemesis for Kolkata giants when he turned out for Minerva Punjab FC, scored with a third minute tap-in after East Bengal goalie Rakshit Dagar gripped air while trying to intercept a Katsumi Yusa corner-kick, the match’s first. The ball fell to Lalrindika Ralte who couldn’t control and Gyeltshen, on loan from Bengaluru FC, stabbed home.
Rattled, East Bengal played further up the park but ran into a sea of bodies. Neroca kept Abdul Salam in front of the back four and had four midfielders playing close to him. A string of half-chances were all East Bengal managed. Antonio Dovale, Laldanmawia Ralte and Jobby Justin either couldn’t test goalie Lalit Thapa goal or fired wide.
East Bengal were also lucky that what looked like a Justin handball inside the area, while defending a corner-kick, wasn’t penalised in the 22nd minute. That and a free-kick from Katsumi which central defender Eduardo Ferreira couldn’t turn towards goal were all that Neroca managed preferring to sit back and use the pace of Gyeltshen, Yusa and Subash Singh.
The story changed in the second half when the pressure of defending told on Neroca. In the 55th minute, Jaime Colado wasted a long pass with a heavy touch. East Bengal coach Alejandro Garcia brought on Esqueda in 57th minute for Dovale and replaced Kamalpreet Singh with Samad Ali Mallick in the 64th.
Neroca’s central defenders Soares and Varney Kallon were out of position when Esqueda attacked a Colado delivery and flicked home in the 67th minute. Garcia’s substitutions were involved in the matchwinner in the 86th. Mallick overlapped and his assist was headed home by Esqueda who now has five goals despite missing over one month due to injury. For East Bengal fans, it meant the dream stayed alive.
CHENNAI CITY HOPE TO REGAIN TOP SPOT
BHUBANESWAR: Chennai City will be eyeing to regain their pole position in the I-league table when they take on the young Indian Arrows in their 15th round encounter on Friday.
Chennai City are currently placed second with 30 points from 14 matches behind Real Kashmir, who are on top with 32 points from 16 games.
Full points will take Chennai back on top, having played a game less than Real Kashmir.
In the first leg, Chennai had pummelled the Arrows 4-1, courtesy a first hat-trick of the season from Spanish sniper Pedro Manzi.
He has gone on to register another during the course of the campaign while scoring 13 goals thus far and remains the Floyd Pinto coached Arrows’ primary threat on Friday.