I-League: East Bengal moves to second with Aizawl draw
Enrique Esqueda's 65th minute strike helped East Bengal secure a point in its I-League clash against former champion Aizawl FC.
Published : Feb 25, 2019 18:55 IST
A 10-man Aizawl FC played an inspired game to hold home favourite East Bengal to a 1-1 draw, in a Hero I-League match here at the Salt Lake Stadium on Monday. The dropped points made East Bengal's quest for an elusive I-League title more difficult. The drawn outcome will cheer up the current leader Chennai City FC, which now has a seven-point lead on top of the standings.
East Bengal jumped to the second spot tallying 33 points from 17 matches while Chennai City has 40 from 18.
READ: Minerva Punjab ends winless run This gave the home attack better direction as a combination between Dovale and Samad Ali Mallick on the right opened the opportunity for East Bengal in the 66th minute. Dovale set up the ball for an overlapping Samad, who set a nice cross in the box for Enrique Esqueda to jump up and finish it.
Aizawl was reduced to 10 men in the 70th minute when it lost defender Kareem Omolaja Nurain to a red card awarded for dissent after the referee had booked him for an infringement. East Bengal tried to make the most of the advantage but failed to find the winner. The result: East Bengal FC 1 (Enrique Esqueda 66) drew with Aizawl FC 1 (Leonce Dodoz 23)