East Bengal FC — battered and bruised in the domestic league and with their backs to the wall — finally found their place in the sun in Asian football —on the bank of river Raidak in the capital of Bhutan.
New coach Oscar Bruzon pulled a rabbit out of his hat as the red-and-gold brigade got the better of Lebanese side Nejmeh FC 3-2 to top Group A of the AFC Challenge League and sealed a place in the quarterfinals of Asia’s revamped third-tier club football.
An own goal by Abdulai Musah in the 8th minute and another poacher’s strike from Dimitri Diamantakos in the 15th minute put Bruzon’s team in firm control of the proceedings. But Nejmeh — who came into the match with back-to-back wins and needed a draw to top the group — refused to be cowed down by the Kolkata team’s early onslaught and were soon back in the contest on the back of Collins Opare and Hussain Monzer in 19 and 43 minutes, respectively.
As the Lebanese team grew into the contest with more purpose after the break and threatened to pinprick East Bengal’s talk of a resurgence, the combination of Madih Talal and Diamantakos delivered the coup de grace. Talal earned a penalty and Diamantakos sent the rival goalkeeper Ali Sabeh the wrong way from the spot in the 77th minute to help East Bengal cross the Nejmeh hurdle in style and book a place in the quarterfinals.
Diamantakos proved why the team management sought his signature so desperately, finishing the Challenge League’s group stage with 4 goals, scoring in all three matches in Thimphu. Nine years after returning to Asian football, it was also quite a statement made by a red-and-golds brigade, who lost 8 matches in a row in domestic football and now finishing the group stage of an AFC competition with an unbeaten run, winning two of the 3 matches and scoring 9 goals.
Yet, odds were heavily stacked against them when they reached Bhutan’s capital. Bruzon’s era began with back-to-back losses (0-2 vs Mohun Bagan SG and 1-2 vs Odisha FC) in the Indian Super League. But in less than a couple of weeks’ time, East Bengal looked a transformed side, still not at their best physically but playing with more purpose and potency.
Yet, Nejmeh offered them the stiffest test. East Bengal — who came into Friday’s group-deciding game following a 2-2 draw with hosts Paro FC and a 4-0 demolition of Bangladesh champions Bashundhara Kings — never managed to defeat the Lebanese team, going down to them in their previous two meetings.
But East Bengal set themselves perfectly on their road to self-discovery at the Changlimithang Stadium on Friday. Musah under the challenge of Diamantakos, sent his header into his own net following Talal’s corner and when East Bengal came calling again, Mahesh Naorem Singh sent his delivery perfectly across the face of goal for the Greek striker to tap home.
It was a dream start for East Bengal but two defensive mistakes allowed Nejmeh to come back into the game in the first half itself and on both occasions, Hector Yuste was responsible. The Spanish defender, who started despite being a doubtful starter, seemed to have been bogged down by his muscle injury when he failed to chase Opare, allowing the latter to beat Prabhsukhan Gill.
On the second occasion, he committed a foul near the D and Monzer curled his free-kick perfectly over the wall to let it settle into the top corner.
Nejmeh began the second half with the same attacking tempo and Ali Alrida and Hussan Kourani missed a sitter with a gaping goal in front of them.
Soon, it was Nandhakumar Sekar’s turn to let go of another opportunity at the other end, when he was set by Provat Lakra, the second-half replacement of Yuste.
Nejmeh also upped their ante, Gill staying alert to deal with a few sorties, and urging his defence to stay alert and keep believing in themselves.
Then came Tatal’s turn, drawing a foul from Alrida and Diamantakos stepped up to send home the penalty and take East Bengal into the knockout stage.
New coach Oscar Bruzon pulled a rabbit out of his hat as the red-and-gold brigade got the better of Lebanese side Nejmeh FC 3-2 to top Group A of the AFC Challenge League and sealed a place in the quarterfinals of Asia’s revamped third-tier club football.
An own goal by Abdulai Musah in the 8th minute and another poacher’s strike from Dimitri Diamantakos in the 15th minute put Bruzon’s team in firm control of the proceedings. But Nejmeh — who came into the match with back-to-back wins and needed a draw to top the group — refused to be cowed down by the Kolkata team’s early onslaught and were soon back in the contest on the back of Collins Opare and Hussain Monzer in 19 and 43 minutes, respectively.
As the Lebanese team grew into the contest with more purpose after the break and threatened to pinprick East Bengal’s talk of a resurgence, the combination of Madih Talal and Diamantakos delivered the coup de grace. Talal earned a penalty and Diamantakos sent the rival goalkeeper Ali Sabeh the wrong way from the spot in the 77th minute to help East Bengal cross the Nejmeh hurdle in style and book a place in the quarterfinals.
Diamantakos proved why the team management sought his signature so desperately, finishing the Challenge League’s group stage with 4 goals, scoring in all three matches in Thimphu. Nine years after returning to Asian football, it was also quite a statement made by a red-and-golds brigade, who lost 8 matches in a row in domestic football and now finishing the group stage of an AFC competition with an unbeaten run, winning two of the 3 matches and scoring 9 goals.
Yet, odds were heavily stacked against them when they reached Bhutan’s capital. Bruzon’s era began with back-to-back losses (0-2 vs Mohun Bagan SG and 1-2 vs Odisha FC) in the Indian Super League. But in less than a couple of weeks’ time, East Bengal looked a transformed side, still not at their best physically but playing with more purpose and potency.
Yet, Nejmeh offered them the stiffest test. East Bengal — who came into Friday’s group-deciding game following a 2-2 draw with hosts Paro FC and a 4-0 demolition of Bangladesh champions Bashundhara Kings — never managed to defeat the Lebanese team, going down to them in their previous two meetings.
But East Bengal set themselves perfectly on their road to self-discovery at the Changlimithang Stadium on Friday. Musah under the challenge of Diamantakos, sent his header into his own net following Talal’s corner and when East Bengal came calling again, Mahesh Naorem Singh sent his delivery perfectly across the face of goal for the Greek striker to tap home.
It was a dream start for East Bengal but two defensive mistakes allowed Nejmeh to come back into the game in the first half itself and on both occasions, Hector Yuste was responsible. The Spanish defender, who started despite being a doubtful starter, seemed to have been bogged down by his muscle injury when he failed to chase Opare, allowing the latter to beat Prabhsukhan Gill.
On the second occasion, he committed a foul near the D and Monzer curled his free-kick perfectly over the wall to let it settle into the top corner.
Nejmeh began the second half with the same attacking tempo and Ali Alrida and Hussan Kourani missed a sitter with a gaping goal in front of them.
Soon, it was Nandhakumar Sekar’s turn to let go of another opportunity at the other end, when he was set by Provat Lakra, the second-half replacement of Yuste.
Nejmeh also upped their ante, Gill staying alert to deal with a few sorties, and urging his defence to stay alert and keep believing in themselves.
Then came Tatal’s turn, drawing a foul from Alrida and Diamantakos stepped up to send home the penalty and take East Bengal into the knockout stage.
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