KOLKATA: In the end, East Bengal FC’s promise for another gripping fightback at the Salt Lake Stadium vanished with a piece of dreadful defending.
Riding their usually impressive wing-play, Mumbai City FC left the home team all over the place on Monday and went into the break with a handsome 2-0 lead thanks to goals from Lallianzuala Chhangte (39) and Nikolaos Karelis (44). East Bengal’s defensive set-up was at fault on both occasions.
However, Oscar Bruzon’s hosts came back in the second half with renewed resolve and an own goal by Sahil Panwar (66) and substitute David Hmar’s deft left-footed finish in the 82nd minute not only turned the game on its head at 2-2 but kept East Bengal on track of producing a captivating comeback. Bruzon’s players had been there and done that here three weeks ago. But unlike the way they stunned Punjab FC 4-2 after trailing 0-2 at the end of the first half, Bruzon’s side imploded themselves in a terrible manner this time around.
As Nathan Rodrigues delivered an ambitious through ball, it escaped Anwar Ali’s stretched leg near the halfline. Yet, Hijazi Maher was there to deal with the threat, but East Bengal’s Jordanian defender made a mess of his interception, allowing Karelis to do the simple job of beating goalkeeper Prabhsukhan Gill from close and establishing their domination on the red-and-gold in the ISL.
The win helped Petr Kratky’s Mumbai move up to fifth on the standings with 23 points from 14 matches, while East Bengal’s hopes for getting closer to playoffs suffered another jolt, lying 11th with 14 points.
After ending the year with one of their worst defeats (0-3 at NorthEast United FC), Kratky was looking for a response from his players, and Vikram Pratap Singh and Bipin Singh rose to the occasion in no time, tormenting the home team with some pacey and eye-catching moves down the wings. It was, however, Kratky’s use of Chhangte as the centre of his domestic attacking trident which came in handy.
Bruzon’s move to adopt a high line also proved to be a failed ploy in negotiating Mumbai’s attacks. In the first instance, East Bengal defenders were found wanting in noticing Chhangte’s run from behind as Mumbai winger latched on to Brandon Fernandes’ pass and placed it past a hapless Gill.
Another sloppy defending allowed Mumbai to go 2-0 up. This time, Yuste was unable to stop Karelis’ run and Gill didn’t come out of his line to close the gap with Mumbai’s No. 9. The East Bengal defender managed to block Karelis’ first shot but the Greek striker slotted the rebound in.