Nandhakumar Sekar again proved to be East Bengal’s darling as the red-gold beat NorthEast United FC 5-3 in penalty shoot-out in a dramatic turnaround to reach the final of the Durand Cup after 19 years. With one minute left on the clock, it was Nandhakumar’s (90 7th) header that helped East Bengal make a dramatic turnaround as they came back from a 0-2 deficit to make it 2-2 and a penalty shoot-out to enforce. Nandhakumar then sealed the matter in the penalty shoot-out after Cleiton Silva, Saul Crespo, Borja Herrera and Naorem Mahesh converted their chances. Brazil’s Ibson De Melo, Gani Ahmmed Nigam and Pragyan Gogoi scored for the Highlanders and it was their third try that proved decisive.
First it was Parthiv Gogoi’s shot which was saved by Prabhsukhan Siingh Gill and had to be retaken, and this time East Bengal crosspiece came to the rescue.
This was the first Durand Cup final appearance of the 16-time champions of East Bengal since 2004.
Another derby in the final is not ruled out as East Bengal awaits the winners of Mohun Bagan and FC Goa, who will play the second semi-final of the Durand Cup on Thursday.
The Highlanders, who also had a better record against East Bengal in their six games in the Indian Super League, dominated the run for over an hour as they raced to a 2-0 lead.
The side coached by Carles Cuadrat looked lethargic and was a shadow of their stunning victory over Mohun Bagan in the derby. The glimmer of hope came in the 77th minute.
A brilliant run into the box from Saul Crespo put Naorem Mahesh Singh on the edge of the box, while his shot on goal was headed into his own goal by NorthEast United FC’s Soraisham Dinesh Singh.
The 27-year-old Tamil Nadu lad, whose goal in the Kolkata derby 17 years ago ended their eight-loss streak against Mohun Bagan, was once again in the midst of tension in the latter part of the match.
After missing two successive chances around the 90th minute, Nandhakumar made amends in the eight minutes of stoppage time of the second half.
In front of over 20,000 partisan spectators, little-known Manipuri lad Konsam Phalguni Singh was the unexpected hero for NorthEast United FC, who raced to a 2-0 lead over home favorites East Bengal within an hour. .
A centimeter-perfect cross from the right in the first half provided the first opener for Miguel Zabaco in the 22nd minute.
The 28-year-old, who is poised for an Indian Super League debut this season, returned to give him a commanding 2-0 lead with a superb left-footed finish at the far post after coming in from the right.
Despite East Bengal having more shots on target and more possession, NorthEast United FC skillfully thwarted clear goalscoring opportunities for their opponents.
East Bengal’s best chance in the first half came in the 39th minute when Mandar cross-crossed a long ball from the left wing. However, Javier Siverio’s header attempt was too high to find the net.
This meeting marked the sixth time these teams had faced each other with East Bengal having achieved just one win.
NorthEast United FC enjoyed dominance over East Bengal, winning three matches against them and sharing the points twice. Before that, East Bengal had won one match against the NO rivals. PTI TAP KHS KHS
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