GURPREET HANDS BLUES WIN

Bengaluru: Gurpreet Singh Sandhu pulled off a brilliant penalty save to help Bengaluru FC secure a narrow 1-0 win over Hyderabad FC and keep pace with top spot aspirants in the Indian Super League here on Thursday. Nishu Kumar’s seventh minute strike turned out to be enough for the hosts to claim full points as Hyderabad failed to convert multiple chances including a penalty strike. The Blues are now second in the standings with 28 points from 15 games, while Hyderabad continued their woeful run and remained at the bottom of the table. Nishu provided Bengaluru a stunning opening goal. Dimas Delgado’s corner delivery from the right towards the edge of the box was met with a ferocious volley that sent the ball into the back of the net. Hyderabad were alert to the situation and looked to get back into the game immediately. Nikhil Poojary cut in from the right flank and with the Bengaluru defence opting not to press, the winger produced a curling effort that missed the frame of the goal by inches. The visitors got a major opening in the 23rd minute when Suresh Singh fouled Marcelinho inside the box. But Gurpreet turned out to the Blues’ hero in goal as he kept out Marko Stankovic’s penalty attempt towards the bottom left corner and then saved the rebound by Bobo. Bengaluru missed another chance to double their lead soon after the restart. With both the teams looking to make inroads into their respective final third, a simple pass from Juanan was flicked into the path of Udanta by Khabra. The Hyderabad defence failed to properly clear the ball and it fell for Brown who couldn’t get a shot away in time before Hyderabad goalkeeper Laxmikant Kattimani made the save.