Read Y.B. Sarangi's match report from the Salt Lake arena here . Until then, it's good night.
Before that, there's more sporting action happening around. Joe Root fell to a stunning caught and bowled by Peter Siddle but Rory Burns is closing in on a hundred. My colleague Ayan Acharya with all the latest on the latest from Edgbaston: Follow the blog here .
Paulo Dybala to Manchester United? Romelu Lukaku heading the other way to Juventus? Follow all the latest on the European Transfer center LIVE by Anirudh Velamuri.
A cracker of a game to start the 2019 edition of Durand Cup! We will be back tomorrow with the other 16-time champion East Bengal, who will take on Army Red for a 3 pm kick-off.
The referee blows for the final whistle and big cheer comes from the Mohun Bagan end. Three points for the Mariners in Group B, but they ought to count itself lucky with that 2-0 scoreline. Shilton Paul with the crucial saves which ultimately helped them keep a cleansheet. Vicuna will have plenty to ponder after his side's second half show where it continuously gave the ball away in dangerous areas. Mohammedan could have got more out of the game if not for its poor finishing in the second half and that diving header from Kouassi.
90' + 3' Bagan holds on to the ball, playing it around trying to kill the game.
90' + 1' Tirthankar makes amends by chipping the ball over the Bagan defence with two Mohammedan attackers failing to find the finish!
Three minutes of added time...
90' Tirthankar again... Should have played in the an on the left but he cuts in and holds on to the ball for far too long. His shot on his right is blocked.
88' Chance for Bagan, finally. Ashutosh with a free run on the right but his cross in the box fails to meet his intended target.
Sub has been subbed off. Not often you see that...
Change for Mohammedan: Amirul OUT, Vanlalbiaa Chhangte OUT
83' Just as I say that, Tirthankar misses a glorious opportunity to give his side a goal. Kouassi robs Beitia outside Bagan's area and Thirthankar pounces on it and runs at the 'keeper, who rushes out from his area. Thirthankar goes for the chip which narrowly goes wide of the near post.
Midfielder Tirthankar Sarkar has been a treat to the eyes in Mohammedan colours today. He has been pulling the strings for his side and has upped the ante with his surging runs from midfield and quick switch in play. He will surely catch the eyes of ISL and I-League clubs with this display.
76' Kouassi swings in a cross from the right which dips behind Shilton to strike the cross bar! Bagan living dangerously with some sloppy giveaways. Mohammedan players are forcing the initiative by pressing them quickly at the back.
Change for Mohun Bagan: Sahil OUT, Faiaz IN
75' Another chance for Mohammedan! A dummy at the edge of the box gives Satyam Sharma space to take a shot! He does but Shilton again is behind it, diving low to make the save!
74' A Mohammedan free-kick from the right causes chaos inside the box for Bagan as its defenders fail to clear it out of danger.
71' Musa finds Amirul on the right, who cuts in and fires his shot into the side-netting with a left footed strike! He probably should have looked to fins Musa, who had made a run into the box.
68' Clumsy from Mohammedan. Two of its players go for the same ball, crash into each other as the ball rolls out for a throw in...
66' Musa with a foul on Chamorro crashing into the attacker from behind. He is lucky to have escaped a booking thus far.
Naorem didn't quite have a memorable outing today but it's only the first game of the season.
Change for Mohun Bagan: Imran Khan IN, Naorem OUT
It's great to see Dhanachandra flourishing again and showing how good of a left foot he has at his disposal. He was on the periphery at Chennaiyin in the last two seasons after his knee surgery.
61' Dhana with another superb cross into the box from the left. Chamorro with another header but it lacks power and precission.
30 minutes left for Mohammedan to get something out of this game.
A midfielder comes in place of a center back. Change in formation?
Change for Mohun Bagan: Morante OUT , Francisco Munoz IN
57' Thirthankar floats a cross from the right with his left which ends with Kouassi going for a spectacular with an overhead kick! The shot is blocked by the defender. Mohammedan finds its footing in the last few minutes, moving the ball better in midfield.
54' Sahil with the handball in the center circle and referee gives a free-kick Mohammedan's way.
51' Kouassi gets himself into the box with acres of space to exloit. He goes for a shot from a tight angle which is deflected into the side netting for a corner kick.
48' Beitia wriggles away from his marker from defence and makes a surging run into attack to find Naorem, but the youngster can't get the ball into the feet of Chamorro.
Change for Mohammedan: Amir Hossain OUT, Md. Amirul IN
46' Dhanachandra cuts in and floats in a dangerous cross into the center but Romario can't on the end of the ball.
46' Mohammedan kicking from left to right get us underway in the second 45.
SECOND HALF
Just a few moments away from the restart at the Salt Lake...
Paulo Dybala to Manchester United? Romelu Lukaku heading the other way to Juventus? Follow all the latest on the European Transfer center LIVE by Anirudh Velamuri.
The Ashes is on at the moment. Joe Root and Rory Burns have given England control with a big partnership. My colleague Ayan Acharya with all the latest on the latest from Edgbaston: Follow the blog here .
That's the last meaningful passage of play as the referee blows for the half-time whistle! A fantastic start to the 2019 edition of Durand Cup and Mohun Bagan is making a case for itself with a flying start in the opening 45 minutes. New signing Salva Chamorro with both the goals for the Mariners. Another new foreign export Joseba Beitia has run the show for them from central midfield.
45' CHANCE! Mohammedan wins the ball high up the pitch and gets it to Musa. The midfielder finds Kouassi, who beats the offside trap and puts in a diving header on goal. But Shilton puts in a string punch to the left to keep the ball from going in.
44' Dhanchandra makes a surging run down the left but his cross is foiled by the defender.
43' Mollick with a shot from distance! But his shot blazes over the bar.
41' Another foul on Beitia.. This time from Kouassi. No yellow shown.
41' Finally, a forward foray for Mohammedan.. They move up the right side but the low cross is weak and rolls out for a goal-kick.
40' Beitia with a free-kick from the right but he can't get it over the first wall.
Beitia's close control has invited plenty of attention from the opposition midfielders often unfairly. He isn't pleased with some of the challenges.
35' Chamorro again! No goal this time. A cross is swung in from the right and the striker climbs above the center backs to meet it but can't direct the header on goal. He appears to have suffered a knock while going up for the header.. He goes out of the pitch to receive some treatment.
33' Beitia is flagged offside on the right flank.
32' Satyan Sharma plays a long diagonal from the back which deflects behind for a corner. But Mohammedan choose to play a short corner trying to use Kouassi's height to its advantage. A chipped pass falls safely into the hands of Shilton.
30' A knock to new-boy Romario from Mohammedan's Musa Mudde sends the attacker to the ground. He was writhing in pain on the floor but he has managed to get himself back up.
Mohun Bagan in complete control at the moment... Passing the ball well from the back and hogging possession... Our reporter from the venue says, "Complete dominance!" from the Mariners.
23' We have a visual! And we are back with another goal for Mohun Bagan and it's Chamorro again! Mohun Bagan is up 2-0! He scores with another header meeting the cross of Ashutosh Mehta from the right! A great start to life in Green and Maroon colours for the Spaniard.
It's still 1-0 to Mohun Bagan for the time being. A positive and a fast start to Vicuna's reign as Mohun Bagan coach.
It appears the live streaming app for the game has crashed... I wonder why... Although, I would like to have provided you with a minute-by-minute update of the game, stick around and continue following the blog. I will try to bring you the latest from the opening game of the Durand Cup.
4' Mohammedan's Satyam Sharma gets the first booking of the game.
2' It's only the second minute and the Mariners have taken the lead! New signing Chamorro heads MB in the lead! He converts Beitia's free-kick for his first goal in MB colours.
It's kick-off at the Salt Lake. There is some connectivity issue with the live stream link.
FIRST HALF
5.52 pm: It's currently pouring down at the Salt Lake Stadium as some of the fans make their way back in for some cover. The lights are switched on.
Mohammedan's starting XI: Subham Roy; Hira Mondal, Kareem Omolaja, Sujit Sadhu, Kamran Farooque; Satyam Sharma, Musa Mudde, Tirthankar Sarkar, Sovan Sen, Amir Hossain; Arthur Kouassi
We are 15 minutes away from kickoff.
5.30 pm: That's a fairly new and a strong XI put out by Vicuna in his first game in charge. Starts for new signings Chamorro, Naorem, Romario, Morante, Dhanachandra, Beitia, Mollick and Ashutosh. Youngster SK Sahil was recently called up for a trial with the senior team and has earned himself a starting berth.
Mohun Bagan's starting XI: Shilton Paul; Gurjinder Kumar, Fran Morante, Dhanchandra Singh, Ashutosh Mehta; SK Sahil, Joseba Beitia, Surabuddin Mollick, Nongdamba Naorem; Romario Jesuraj, Salva Chamorro
Subs: Sankar Roy, Arijit Bagui, Fran Gonzalez, SK Faiaz, Deep Saha, Sukhdev Singh, Imran Khan
5.20 pm: The teams are going through their paces before kick-off. There appears to be a big expectation among the locals as there is good turn-out at the Salt Lake. West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee is also in attendance and she receives cheers as her image comes on the screen.
5.17 pm: The last time a Durand Cup match was held was between Army Green and NEROCA FC in 2016, when the former beat the current I-League side on penatlies. Mohun Bagan and East Bengal are the most successful teams in the competition's history with 16 titles each. All eyes will be on how the Mariners start their campaign today. They are starting under a new coach and their fans will expect a positive start to the season after managing only a fifth place finish in the 2018-19 I-League.
As we wait for the teams news from the middle, read our reporter Y.B. Sarangi's preview of the contest.
PREVIEW
Even as I-League and Indian Super League (ISL) are locked in a battle of supremacy, teams participating in both the leagues have got together to play the Durand Cup – which has been revived after a two-year gap to provide more competitive exposure to the players.
Notwithstanding the presence of 10 I-League and ISL teams, one cannot undermine that many of the sides are still in the build-up phase for the season and may give chance to the younger lot who play in the second division.
Two well-known city-based clubs – Mohun Bagan and Mohammedan Sporting – will lock horns in the opening tie of the event, which will run parallel to the Calcutta Football League (CFL).
Mohammedan is bubbling with confidence and fancies its chances against a stronger Bagan, studded with four Spaniards and coached by Spanish coach Kibu Vicuna, at the Salt Lake Stadium here on Friday.
Mohammedan captain Kamran Farooque said the side prepared well under the watchful eyes of Subrata Bhattacharya. “We have prepared well in the last two months. It does not matter whether we are playing a big team or a small team,” said Kamran in the pre-match press conference on Thursday.
Kamran said his side, comprising a good mix of youth and experience including four African players, had little knowledge about Bagan’s game. “We don’t know anything about the opposition. Even they don’t know anything about our game as no match has been played this season. We are ready for any combination or any challenge.”
Vicuna had some basic idea about Mohammedan. “We are not taking them lightly. I know they have an experienced coach.”
The Spaniard said his squad was on the path of improvement. “We have been training for the last one month. It’s a new team having a lot of new players. This process takes time and in two months time we will be better.”
According to Vicuna, Bagan will try to play attacking and pro-active football. “We will try to create chances and score as soon as possible,” he said.
5.05 pm: We will be kicking things off with a big one between Kolkata derby rivals -- Mohun Bagan and Mohammeden SC -- from Group B.
5.03 pm: After a short off-season in Indian football, the action resumes on the field with Asia's oldest cup competition, Durand Cup. The competition is making its return after a two-year period with some of the biggest clubs taking part in this edition.
The group stage of the Durand Cup will be live streamed on Addatimes.
Comments
SHARE