East Bengal beats Indian Arrows 3-1 at Cooperage - As it happened

AIFF's developmental side Indian Arrows is eager to beat East Bengal for the second time this season after it beat the Red and Gold at Kalyani.

Updated : Feb 17, 2020 21:32 IST

East Bengal drew with Punjab 1-1 in its last outing.
East Bengal drew with Punjab 1-1 in its last outing.
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East Bengal drew with Punjab 1-1 in its last outing.

 

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Full time: East Bengal 3-1 Indian Arrows - Nothing comes from injury time as the final whistle goes off. East Bengal takes the game and, with it, three points. Jamie Santos scored the opener for East Bengal. Asheer Akthar doubled that lead and Lalrindika Ralte made it three for the visitor, both these goals coming in the second half. Arrows' Vikram Pratap missed a penalty shot, but he managed to compensate with a shot in open play, but that's all his team could contribute to that scoreboard giving EB a decisive win here at the Cooperage ground.


Five minutes have been added here to the second half.

89' - Lovely passage of play here from the Indian Arrows. Akash Mishra gets the ball down the left flank and the Arrows come in waves, one man after an another, to try and get the ball into the net. Ayush Adhikari gets a kick in but its too high. Could have been something had that been placed right!

87' - Third and final substitution for East Bengal. Monotosh Chakladar substitutes Juan Mera, who came in as a substitute in the first place. Has he picked up a niggle?

85' - Jittery few seconds there for East Bengal as Akash Mishra manages to get the ball into play in the East Bengal goalmouth, managing to persist with efforts despite the defense feverishly trying to clear the ball. The final kick finds goalkeeper Ralte and Asheer Akthar. No damage done for the drama.

84' - Clumsy challenge there on Rohit Danu. He found himself sandwiched there between two white shirts. Awkward.

81' - Second substitution for EB: Rohlupuia replaces Kromah. Kromah didn't quite have a good game this evening but would be happy to be on the winning side nonetheless.

79' - Final change for Arrows as Rohit Danu is walking in. Meanwhile, EB's Samad is receiving medical treatment following a foul on him.

77' - Harmanpreet Singh replaces Suranjit as Shanmugham Venkatesh makes another change.

72' - Saurabh Meher is the first change made by Indian Arrows. He replaces Ajin Tom.

67' - GOAL! Lalrindika Ralte scores the third for East Bengal! Indian Arrows players concede from a corner-kick again. Didika jumps high for a header from a Santos corner-kick to make it a two-goal lead for EB. Indian Arrows 1-3 East Bengal.

65' - Juan Mera has replaced Brandon VL for East Bengal.

62' - GOAL! Asheer Akhtar gives East Bengal the lead with a tap-in. He gets to the end of a corner-kick, sliding the ball into the net at the far post. Indian Arrows 1-2 East Bengal.

60' - The one-hour mark has been crossed. Scores are level with goals from Jaime Santos and Vikram Pratap Singh.

55' - GOAL! Vikram Pratap Singh bridges the deficit with an equaliser, rushing in from the left flank. He headed the ball down before flicking it into the far post with his right foot. Indian Arrows 1-1 East Bengal.

50' - Didika takes a free-kick aiming for Espada in the box. Espada gets his head to the delivery but heads it above the bar.

47' - MISSED! Vikram misses from the spot as he shoots wide! He sends the goalkeeper the wrong way but fails to find the net with the spot-kick. What a wasted chance!

47' - PENALTY! Ajin Tom's shot hits the arm of Abhash Thapa in the box. It's a penalty for Indian Arrows.

46' - Second half begins.

Half time: Indian Arrows 0-1 East Bengal: Jaime Santos' early strike keeps East Bengal in the lead at the break in the Cooperage stadium in Mumbai.

45' - Adhikari sends the ball into the air from a free-kick. Meanwhile, a minute has been added to this half.

43' - Suranjit does well to win the ball from the East Bengal midfield. He runs towards the box with the ball but fails to push further as an EB defender intercepts. Perhaps, he should have passed it for Vikram or taken a shot himself.

35' - Didika takes the free-kick but sends the curling ball over the net.

34' - Adhikari blocks Kromah's run just before the Liberian entered the box. The ref awards a free-kick to East Bengal, inches away from the box. Can EB make it 2-0 before the break?

33' - Vikram shoots wide from close range as he cuts to his left, following a corner-kick. The Indian Arrows side is doing well in terms of attack as it is penetrating the East Bengal half. But so far, the visiting Kolkata is leading by 1-0.

28' - Kromah scuffs the chance to make it 2-0 as he ends up shooting diagonally, as if playing a cross for Espada from the edge of the box.

26' - Vikram crosses the ball for Telem Suranjit Singh in front of the goal from the right flank. Telem couldn't reach the cross in time for a tap-in.

25' - Ayush Adhikhari, from the free-kick, sends the ball through the East Bengal wall...and into the hands of the goalkeeper! It was a well delivered free-kick but was kept straight at Lalthuamawia Ralte between the sticks.

23' - Asheer Akhtar blocks and brings down Vikram Pratap at the edge of the box as the young Arrows attacker was running towards the goal. The referee blows his whistle for a free-kick following the foul from Asheer.

20' - A fine long-ball is played forward for an onrushing Anusmana Kromah on the left wing but the Liberian is offside and up goes the linesman's flag!

15' - Lalrindika Ralte plays the ball for Espada on the left flank but Espada squares the ball poorly as he slowly rolls out of play. If you have just joined us, East Bengal is leading 1-0, thanks to a goal from Jaime Santos within four minutes of kick-off.

13' - A ball is played forward for Marcos Espada in the box but he is pulled back by Indian Arrows defender Hendry Antonay. Espada is furious as he appeals for a penalty-kick but the match official is not buying it.

5' - CLOSE! Vikram Pratap nearly makes it 1-1 as he rushes up the left flank before firing a shot for the far post. It missed the mark by a whisker as the ball rolled past the goal line.

4' - GOAL! Jaime Santos with a thunderous strike to give East Bengal the lead! A loose clearance in the box allows Santos to pounce on the ball and send it into the net at the far post. Indian Arrows 0-1 East Bengal.

1' - Kickoff! Indian Arrows vs East Bengal is underway in Mumbai.

Match line-ups

Indian Arrows XI: Jongte, Hormipam, Akash, Hendry, Ajin, Ayush, Telem, Ricky, Givson, Vikram, Nikhil.

East Bengal XI: Ralte, Asheer, Abhash, Samad, Mehtab, Aidara, Didika, Brandon, Santos, Espada, Kromah.

Match preview

I-League returns to the Cooperage Stadium in Mumbai for the first time in three years on Monday when the All India Football Federation's (AIFF) developmental side Indian Arrows squares off against Kolkata giant East Bengal.

The Arrows stunned the Red and Golds at the Kalyani stadium a couple of weeks ago, coming away with a 1-0 win. However, it lost 0-1 to defending champion Chennai City and played out a goalless draw against NEROCA.

Arrows' head coach Shanmugam Venkatesh asserted confidence ahead of the match.

“We are confident of a positive result against Quess East Bengal. Our last match against them was a good one for us and we will give our 100% once again.”

Venkatesh remains wary of the challenge despite beating the Kolkata side at home.

“As I said earlier too, they are a very good team with a lot of talented players and we will have to be at our best to get the result we want.”

 

East Bengal has had a plethora of problems to deal with over the season but can take note of a select few positives from its last outing against Punjab FC. It struck early in that game, courtesy of an Ansumana Kromah stunner but suffered because of lacklustre defending and conceded an equaliser, drawing 1-1.

Despite the tough times, East Bengal's supporters still remain firmly behind the team as the proverbial 12th man and forward Ansumana Kromah voiced his gratitude ahead of Monday's game.

“We are all grateful for the passionate support we still have and I’ve felt that ever since I came back.”

Kromah had struggled to find a place in the starting XI this season, but Marcos Jimenez De La Espada’s dismissal in the reverse leg against the Arrows paved the way for him to make a point. Against Punjab, both Espada and Kromah were named to start upfront, with the latter delivering the goods and finding the net.

"We have to respect the Indian Arrows. They are a great team with some outstanding young talent. They like to run a lot and they stunned us at home. We need to be careful, especially their right-wing which can cause us some trouble," Kromah said.

Match details

Indian Arrows vs East Bengal will kick off at 7 PM IST and can be watched on 1Sports or streamed on Fancode app and website.

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