Bright Enobakhare scored one of the finest solo goals in the history of the Indian Super League as SC East Bengal earned a 1-1 draw with FC Goa at the Tilak Maidan on Wednesday.
The result, SC East Bengal's fourth draw of the season, sees it move up to the ninth spot with seven points from nine games, FC Goa remains third with 15 points from 10 matches.
MATCH REPORT |
Robbie Fowler's side was reduced to 10 men early in the second half as captain Danny Fox was shown a straight red for a tackle on Romario Jesuraj. FC Goa, which scored two stoppage-time winners in its two previous clashes, failed to capitalise on the numerical advantage and had to settle for a point.
Here are the key talking points from the SC East Bengal vs FC Goa ISL 2020-21 clash:
Bright Enobakhare, remember the name
SC East Bengal has struggled for goals this season. It took four matches to open its account and had to heavily depend on the likes of Jacques Maghoma to find the net. Enter Bright Enobakhare, the club's latest signing in the January window.
The Nigerian, who spent five years with Premier League club Wolverhampton Wanderers, made an instant impact on his debut last week as he struck the final goal in the 3-1 win over Odisha.
Highlights|
That performance was enough to earn him a spot in the starting XI against Goa and boy, did he deliver. The 22-year-old was his side's best player on the pitch by a mile, dictating play in midfield and dancing his way past defenders at will.
He put his side ahead in the most remarkable fashion with a fantastic solo effort in the 80th minute. Having received Maghoma's pass, Enobakhare went on a dizzying run that saw him cut past Princeton Rebello, Aiban Dohling, Ivan Gonzalez and Saviour Gama before slotting the ball past goalkeeper Mohammed Nawaz.
The goal, his second of the season, will definitely be among the top contenders for goal of the season. Asked to describe the goal post the game, he quipped, "I don't even remember what I did." He may not remember what he did, but it will be a goal that the SC East Bengal faithful will cherish for years to come.
Refereeing under the scanner, again
The refereeing was a topic of debate yet again as Rowan Arumughan showed Fox a straight red but failed to book FC Goa's Saviour Gama for a two-footed challenge.
Fox initially lost the ball and tried to retrieve it under the pressure of an onrushing Jesuraj. The SC East Bengal captain managed a touch on the ball but his momentum saw him clatter into Jesuraj in what looked a very painful collision. The referee was quick to send him away for an early shower, much to Robbie Fowler's chagrin.
Talking post the game, Fowler said: "The less said about the referees, the better. I think we did well but every game we are up against the referee. And we have to live with that. Two players went for the ball, he (Daniel Fox) won the ball. I don't know why he was sent off. I hope it's only a one game ban."
The other incident in question was Gama's dangerous two-footed tackle on Ankit Mukherjee in the first half. Gama looked highly unlikely to win the ball and caught Ankit on the shin. Had Ankit not jumped up in time, he could have picked up a serious injury. Despite the nature of the tackle, the referee surprisingly let Gama off with a mere warning.
RELATED |
The referee issued a total of 11 cards on Wednesday - seven yellow cards and a red to the players and four yellow cards to the coaching staff of both teams.
Another super sub, another goal for Goa
Juan Ferrando's substitutions late in the game have worked wonders for his side as Devendra Murgaonkar struck the equaliser 13 minutes after coming on. It was the second game in a row that a substitute made an impact on the scoreline as Ishan Pandita scored within 30 seconds of coming on against Hyderabad FC last week.
Devendra was at the right place at the right time as he nodded home Gama's cross from the left to equalise seconds after SC East Bengal had taken the lead.
Comments
SHARE