Derby delight for Mariners
Kolkata, Jan. 19: Mohun Bagan, who will join Indian Super League from next season as a merged team with ATK, beat arch rivals East Bengal 2-1 in a emotion-packed penultimate Kolkata I-League derby at the Salt Lake Stadium here on Sunday.
Spaniard Joseba Beitia gave Mohun Bagan an 18th minute lead with a free header, a result of 20-yearold Nongdamba Naorem’s livewire passing from the left-flank.
East Bengal, who played under pressure in the firsthalf, looked a transformed unit after the break but Mohun Bagan struck through Baba Diawara (65th) against the run of play with the man-of-thematch Beitia sending in a clinical corner kick.
The Senegalese rose to the occasion and nodded it home to seal three points for Mohun Bagan, consolidating their position atop the table, in front of a massive turnout with 63,756 fans watching the match.
They now have 17 points from eight matches, six clear of second placed Punjab FC in an unbeaten six matches run. East Bengal suffered their third defeat in a row to be on eight points from seven matches.
A lacklustre East Bengal reduced the margin through Marcos Jimenez de La Espada (72nd) as there were a slew of attacks from the red-andgold camp but none of them resulted in a goal.
It was substitute Edmund Lalrindika who showed his class with a delightful through ball to Espada as he shot low to the goalkeeper’s right to reduce Mohun Bagan’s lead.
But minutes later, there was another jolt for East Bengal as Edmund, who came in as a substitute, limped off the ground after suffering an injury.
East Bengal also had their best chance in the 80th minute when Juan Mera’s 30-yard shot bounced off the crosspiece.
Pressing hard, East Bengal had several chances coming in their way in the dying moments but none of them resulted in a goal.
East Bengal also appealed for a penalty in the 60th minute when Marcos, who himself seemed to have handled the ball, was brought down inside the Mohun Bagan box by Sankar Roy but referee Ajitkumar Meitei had other ideas.
With Mohun Bagan announcing their merger with two-time ISL champions ATK, this was the penultimate Kolkata derby in the I-League era.
And Mohun Bagan made it special, winning their first derby since January 21, 2018 — a 2-0 win in ILeague. Since then, Mohun Bagan had failed to win from four matches, including two in I-League.