I-League 2017-18 Live: Mohun Bagan 1-0 East Bengal

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 1-0 

       39' Kingsley

 

The Mohun Bagan players are absolutely delighted after the final whistle. Shilton Paul races to hug his coach Sanjoy Sen, who will be a relieved man after the win. The Bagan players definitely deserve this, as they played brilliantly on the day to oust East Bengal. Kingsley is announced as the Man of the Match for a stunning performance. The Mariners were brilliant in the first half, scoring a great goal through Kingsley Eze and defended very well in the second half. East Bengal looked dangerous at times, but they have a lot of work to do after being on one point from their first two I-League games. This is Uttiyo Sarkar signing off for Khel Now. Good-bye Ladies and Gentlemen!

90+5 Calvin Lobo sends in an inviting box which isn't cleared away properly by the Mariners defenders, allowing another acrobatic effort from an East Bengal player which goes wide of the mark. THE FINAL WHISTLE IS BLOWN!

90+4 Mohun Bagan are now just keeping possession in their box. East Bengal get a final free-kick before the final whistle. 

90+3 CHANCE FOR BENGAL. The ball finds it way into the Bagan box, and an acrobatic attempt by CHarles finds it way to Al Amna, whose shot is deflected for another corner. 

90+1 East Bengal get a corner, which is brilliantly punched away by Shilton. 5 minutes of added time is shown on the board. Mohun Bagan players are now just play-acting to waste some precious seconds. 

89' Kinowaki brilliantly wins the ball in midfield and goes past Al Amna by tricking him before sending the ball to Sk Faiaz. The midfielder is through on goal, but Deepak Kumar makes a stunning challenge to stop him and send it for a Bagan corner. 

86' Mohun Bagan make their final substitution for the day, with Raynier Fernandes going off for Nikhil Kadam. 

84' The Mariners have now put almost all their players in defensve mode apart from Kromah and Norde. East Bengal cannot penetrate through the middle and are trying to do so through the right, but can't seem to do so either. 

80' WHAT A SAVE FROM PAUL! Brandon Vanlelremdika gets the ball on the left hand side, and goes for a curling attempt from inside the left-side of the box, but the shot is amazingly saved by Paul. East Bengal replace Brandon for Calvin Lobo. 

78' Norde is being an absolute menace for Bengal. He tricks past many Bengal players before passing it to Kromah, who shows impressive strength by fending off Eduardo, but his left-footed attempt was scuffed away for a corner. 

76' Mohun Bagan win another corner, which East Bengal fail to clear and falls to a Mohun Bagan player, whose shot goes way over the bar. The attendance for the match is an impressive 64,630! 

74' BIG CHANCE FOR BENGAL. Willis Plaza shows some impressive feet and goes past a Mohun Bagan defender and is free on goal, but he doesn't decide to take the shot and Kinshuk Debnath comes in to tackle well and take the ball from him. Plaza should have gone for the shot rather than trying to win a penalty for his side!

72' The midfield battle is getting really intense here at the Salt Lake Stadium. It's mostly between Kinowaki and Al Amna, who are again getting at it in the center of the pitch as East bengal get a free-kick.

69' East Bengal keep fighting for the ball in midfield and it falls to the path of Chullova, who hits a wicked shot from a long way out which almost creeps into the goal. Meanwhile, Kromah is on the sidelines for Bagan and Eduardo is holding his knee as well.

67' An Amusing moment here at the Salt Lake Stadium, as the Mohun Bagan fans start a Mexican wave from their side. But just as it moves towards the East Bengal fans' end, their end refuses to go along with it and it stops. Shows how nothing is fun and games in this derby!

64' CLOSE! East Bengal receive a free-kick from 25 yards out, with Katsumi taking the helm. The former Bagan midfielder whips in a curling free-kick, which was just whiskers away from going into the back of the net. 

61' Kromah is now playing as the lone striker for Mohun Bagan and has already been a menace. He gets in a good position and finds the ball inside the box, but Chullova clears the danger before he could pull the pin on a shot. 

60' Dicka seems to have suffered a bad injury here. The last season's I-League Golden Boot winner is being taken to the hospital in an ambulance. Worrying signs for Sanjoy Sen.

58' Al Amna shows great resistance on the right-hand side and powers his way into the Mohun Bagan box, but his low cross is collected well by Paul. Meanwhile, the injured Dicka is being replaced by Mohun Bagan, who are making a defensive change by bringing in midfielder Shilton Silva. 

55' Kinowaki seems to be hungry to stop East Bengal from mounting attacks and brings down Amna who was trying to break on the counter-attack from the corner. Khalid Jamil's men are now looking to keep possession and take it a bit slow. 

53' Ricky gets some space on the left and whips in an inviting cross for Bagan which is cleared out of a corner by East Bengal. Meanwhile, Dicka is down once again inside the box and the stretcher is brought out to escort him out. 

51' Sanjoy Sen's men seem to be hungry for that second goal, which can seal the tie for themselves. The Mariners are trying to hit their rivals on the counter-attack but haven't been able to conjure up a good chance till now. 

48' Mohun Bagan receive a free-kick in a dangerous position which is perfect for Sony Norde. The Mariners captain steps up and hits a curling free-kick which goes just over Barreto's goal.

46' East Bengal begin the half on the attack as Plaza finds the ball on the left-hand side just outside the box but fouls a defender int he process. 

03:08 PM The players are back out onto the pitch. Both the sides are huddled around to discuss some tactics before the second half kicks-off in just a bit. East Bengal have made a change, with Bazie Armand being replaced by Charles De Souza. 

HALF-TIME ANALYSIS: The Kolkata Derby has not let us down so far! It's been a really entertaining half of football here at the Salt Lake Stadium, with Mohun Bagan turning out to be superior so far. The Mariners had two big chances before breaking the deadlock in the 39h minute, when Norde's superb corner found Kingsley's head. The former Aizawl man has given a big blow to former manager Khalid Jamil, who has a lot of work to do at half-time for his side to give a better showing in the second half. 

45+3 Mohun Bagan receive a free-kick from way out of the East Bengal box, but Norde decides to be in it's helm. The Mariners captain takes an ambitious attempt at goal, but his shot goes sailing over the net. Half-time!

45+1 Three minutes of added time for this exciting first half. East Bengal receive another free kick which is taken short by Katsumi, who passes to Kumar whose cross was weak. Bengal are pressing high up, but the Mariners are doing their best to contain them just before the half-time whistle. 

44' The Mariners will be cursing themselves for not doubling their lead. East Bengal have been on the attack since the goal, and get a free-kick from a promising position. It's taken by Al Amna but is cleared out well by the Bagan defense. 

41' East Bengal have been rattled by this goal and make a terrible mistake as Kromah wins the ball from Eduardo. He passes the ball to Dicka, who has a clear shot on goal, but his powerful low shot is sved well by Barreto. 

39' GOAAALLLL!! Mohun Bagan make the break-through. Sony Norde sends in another curving ball into the box and goes through all the East Bengal players, before finding the header of Kingsley! The Bagan fans go absolutely wild!

37' The Mariners get another corner on the right side. Dicka is writhing in pain inside the box, who had been brought down by Gurwinder. The East Bengal defender sees a yellow card for his challenge, much to the delight of the Bagan fans. 

35' East Bengal receive a corner this time, and Katsumi drives in an inviting ball which is helped on by the head of a player and reaches Eduardo, who is crowded out in the box and The Mariners later clear the danger. 

32' Another Big chance for the Mariners! Mohun Bagan get their first corner of the game. Norde sends in a brilliant ball and finds the head of Kinglsey, which is tipped by Barreto to strike the post and out. It goes to Kinowaki, but his shot cannot go past the army of East Bengal players guarding the goal. 

30' A change for Mohun Bagan this time as Naro Hari Shrestha goes off for Sk. Faiz.  East Bengal create a good move through the right as Chullova whips in a great cross, but Plaza misses a free-header a few yards out from goal. 

27' The Mohun Bagan bench are absolutely livid at the referee for not booking Gurwinder Singh after a rash challenge from the defender to Norde. The Mariners attempt to move through the right, but Deepak Kumar does well to steal the ball. 

24' Willis Plaza finally gets featured in this game, with the striker getting sme space and hitting a powerful shot which is wide of the mark. Another BIG chance for The Mariners as Sony Norde finds the ball on the left hand-side of East Bengal's penalty area, and his low shot is saved brilliantly by Barreto and cleared out of danger. 

21' An early substitution for East Bengal as Mehtab Singh goes off for Lalram Chullova. He didn't seem to be injured, so it's probably a tactical one from Jamil. 

20' The play is stopped as Kromah is down holding his head just outside East Bengal's box. The players get a short water break, as Jamil gives some instructions to Ralte and Yusa in that time. 

18' Mahmoud Al Amna is brought down inside the box by Yuta Kinowaki, but it seemed to be a clean challenge. The former Shillong Lajong midfield later also takes the ball away from Brandon, as he's doing well in his I-League debut for the Mariners. 

15' Sony Norde is starting to get more of the ball. But the East Bengal players are glued to him and Laldanmawia Ralte gets a yellow card for tripping him in midfield. Meanwhile, Big Chance for Bagan as Kromah gets some space in midfield and hits a thunderous attempt on goal, which rattles the top bar and rebounds to Dicka, whose weak header is easily collected by Barreto. 

13' Katsumi Yusa suffers the wrath of the Mohun Bagan fans after fouling Raynier in midfield. The Mariners create agreat attack through the middle but Kromah scuffs his shot from a promising position. 

10' The fans are still pouring into this match! Aser Dipanda Dicka is seemingly tripped just outside of Bengal's box, but the referee is stern and tells him to get up as play goes on. 

8' Kromah gets the ball outside East Bengal's box and does some good work to go past Barzie, but his weak shot is easily collected by Barreto. 

5' East Bengal go close! Plaza comes down deep and makes a cracking through ball into the box to Brandon, but Paul gets to the ball before the youngster can. 

3' It's quite neck and neck at this point. Some rash challenges have already been made as we can expect a heated encounter today as well. East Bengal try to penetrate the defense but The Mariners clear out the danger. 

1' And we kick-off! East Bengal lose the ball early on as Mohun Bagan try to create a move through the right but Kromah loses the ball just inside the box. 

02:00 PM The Mariners are in a huddle right now. East Bengal players have taken the positions and are set to kick-off.

1:59 PM The teams are now out in the field as the players shake hands before going into their respective ends and take some team photos. The Mohun Bagan fans are making a LOT of noise here at the Salt Lake Stadium!

1:57 PM The Players are coming out to the field! The crowd is going absolutely wild! People are still flooding into the stadium and it's close to being completely packed. We are minutes away from kick-off folks!

1:55 PM East Bengal have surprisingly picked no local player for the Derby. Bagan have brought a surprise packaged in striker Naro Hari, who can threaten with his size advantage over others. 

1:50 PM East Bengal XI: Barreto(C), M. Singh, Gurwinder, Ferreira, Kumar, Bazie, Ralte, Al Amna, Brandon, Katsumi, Plaza.

1:50 PM Mohun Bagan XI: Paul, Kingsley, Debnath, Bagui, Ricky, Fernandes, Kinowaki, Naro Hari, Kromah, Norde(C), Dicka. 

1:45 PM The teams have not gone into the changing rooms to put on the illustrious kits. Katsumi Yusa was one of the last one's out of the pitch, as he took some time out to applaud the East Bengal fans. The Mariners' fans did not like that at all!

1:40 PM Both the teams are on the pitch doing some pre-match practice. The fans are starting to flood into the ground, with the Mariners faithful sitting on the left-hand side of the field and East Bengal's fans sitting on the right-hand side. 

1:35 PM It's a bright and sunny day here at the Salt Lake Stadium in Kolkata. Hello Ladies and Gentlemen, Uttiyo Sarkar here and I'll be bringing you the updates from this much-awaited first Kolkata Derby of the I-League season. 

1:30 PM Before big kick-off read pre-match conference report - Sanjoy Sen wants I-League title, Jamil seeks discipline from players

Also Read: 5 players who could decide the Kolkata Derby

1:25 PM The derby is one of the most storied fixtures in not only Indian, but world football and is being played for over the past 100 years, between the bitter-rivals who are separated by just a few miles in the City of Joy. Both teams have huge and dedicated fan bases around the world. Both clubs represent a specific class of Bengali people, Mohun Baganrepresents people existing in the western part of Bengal (known as Ghotis), while East Bengal is primarily supported by people hailing from the eastern part of pre-independence Bengal province (known as Bangals).

This year the derby has taken on added significance with this likely to be the last season of the I-League in its present form and with both clubs seeking one last league title. It is especially significant for the Red and Gold who are craving a maiden league crown

In the last I-League campaign, East Bengal could not get the better off their arch-rivals in both games playing out a goalless stalemate in their home game and losing 1-2 in the return leg (both matches being held in Siliguri). The Red and Gold failed to restore pride in the Federation Cup as well losing 0-2 in Cuttack.

Coming back to Sunday’s high-voltage game, both teams have played one game each before facing each other. Mohun Bagan played out a 1-1 stalemate against Minerva Punjab in Ludhiana while East Bengal played out a 2-2 draw against Aizawl FC at home. Sony Norde was on the scoresheet for Bagan against the Punjab outfit while Eduardo Ferreira and Katsumi Yusa named themselves as the scorers for the Red and Gold brigade against the champions.

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If we look into the current standings in the points table East Bengal are placed third, courtesy a better goal difference from their arch-rivals Mohun Bagan who are sitting fifth in the points table.

1:20 PM Match Preview - Mohun Bagan and East Bengal square off as the Kolkata Derby comes back home to Salt Lake Stadium.