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Emami East Bengal FC –3 (David Hmar 43’, Diamantakos 61’ Saul Crespo 68’) Indian Air Force FT – 1 (Soma 19’)
Kolkata, July 29th, 2024: Emami East Bengal started their campaign in the 133rd IndianOil Durand Cup, with a comfortable 3-1 victory over Indian Air Force Football Team (IAFFT) in a Group A encounter played here at the Vivekananda Yuba Bharati Krirangan (VYBK). The Airmen took the lead against the run of play in the 19th minute through Somananda Singh, but goals from David Lalhlansanga, Dimitrios Diamantakos and Saul Crespo, gave a comfortable victory to the last year’s runners up, as they went on top of the group standings over their arch-rivals Mohun Bagan Super Giant.
All 43 matches of the 133rd IndianOil Durand Cup will be broadcast LIVE on the Sony Sports Network (Sony Ten2 HD) as well as livestreamed on the SonyLiv OTT platform
Emami East Bengal FC Head Coach Carles Cuadrat named a strong starting 11 with new signings MadihTalal, Jeakson Singh, David Lalhlansanga and Mark Zothanpuia making their debut for the Kolkata giants along with the star names like Naorem Mahesh Singh, Hijazi Maher and Saul Crespo. Indian Air Force Head Coach Priya Darshan fielded a young starting line up with the experienced duo of Arashpreet Singh and Vivek Kumar on the bench.
David Lalhlansanga came close to giving the hosts the lead from a Mahesh freekick, but his glancing header hit the woodwork and went out. The top scorer from last year came close to scoring again in the sixth minute, as he found himself in a one-on-one situation with the goalkeeper, but ShubajitBasu did well to thwart the attack and keep the scores level. The first quarter of the match was played inside the Air Force half, with East Bengal pushing to take the lead, but the Air Force defence stood its ground to keep CarlesCuadrat’s men at bay.
IAF took the lead in the 19th minute, completely against the run of play. The East Bengal defence which did not have much to do until that point was caught napping as SauravSadhukhan’s cross from the right wing was met by Somananda Singh and the striker’s powerful header beat Prabhsukhan Singh Gill for the first goal of the game.
The Airmen then defended making it difficult for the East Bengal attack and penetrate to create clear cut openings, which was evident from the number of attempts the Kolkata side took in the first half, 15 in total.
The equaliser came in the 43rd minute as MadihTalal found David Lalhlansanga through a great chipped ball to put the forward through on goal and the Mizo striker fended off a challenge from the defender and chipped the Air Force goalkeeper to score the first goal for his new club.
Second half substitutions changes the dimension of the game
CarlesCuadrat brought in Greek forward Dimitrios Diamantakos and Vishnu P.V, in place of David Lalhlansanga and Naorem Mahesh Singh. The move brought the needed dividends for the Spaniard tactician as his team increased the pace of the game and were looking dangerous with every move.
They took the lead in the 61st minute as Diamantakos planted a strong header past the Indian Air Force goalkeeper from a beautiful cross from left-back Mark Zothanpuia, released by the ever present MadihTalal.
East Bengal widened the gap with their opponents, scoring the third goal after seven minutes. Diamantakos was found by Sourav on top of the pass who found Saul Crespo with a square pass. The Spanish midfielder took a brilliant first touch to spin away from his marker and nailed a right-footer on the turn past Subhajit.
East Bengal saw off the rest of the match with ease not without missing a couple more chances in the dying minutes of the game.
Double Header Tomorrow
The action of the 133rd IndianOil Durand Cup will shift to Kokrajhar tomorrow as local side Bodoland FC will face ISL side NorthEast United FC in Group E in an all Assam derby at the SAI Stadium which will have a 4 PM kick-off.
In the second match of the day at 7 PM Punjab FC will meet CISF Protectors XI in a Group C encounter which will be played at the Kishore Bharati Krirangan.
ABOUT DURAND CUP
A symbol of India’s football history and culture, the Durand Cup is Asia’s oldest and the world’s third oldest football tournament. Organised by the Indian Army on behalf of the three Services, the Durand Cup has been the breeding ground for India’s best footballing talent, over the years.
The inaugural edition happened in Shimla in 1888 and then the tournament moved to New Delhi in 1940, where it was held till 2016. In 2019, the tournament came under the aegis of the Eastern Command and moved to the eastern part of the country, with Kolkata, the Mecca of Indian football and the Eastern Command Headquarters, being the home base. What makes the Durand Cup even more unique is that the winners get three trophies, two rotating (Durand Cup and Shimla Trophy) and one for permanent keep (President’s Cup).
As we embark on this exciting journey over the coming weeks, let us celebrate the beautiful game of football, honour the traditions of the Durand Cup, and look forward to witnessing moments of brilliance that will be etched in our memories forever.