Mohun Bagan beat East Bengal 2-0 in the Kolkata derby in the Indian Super League at the Vivekananda Yuba Bharati Krirangan in Kolkata on Saturday.
Hugo Boumous and Manvir Singh scored the goals as the Mariners defeated the torchbearers and climbed up to fourth in the points table.
As the fans waited patiently despite a delay of nearly 30 mins, the match started with rapturous applause.
In the fifth minute of the game, Hugo Boumous, who had been running rings around the EBFC midfield, found the ball at his feet in behind to the left of the goal. He decided to cut back to Subhasish Bose, whose shot whistled over the crossbar.
After the initial pressure from ATK Mohun Bagan, with Liston Colaco ruffling the side netting in the 11th minute, it was time for East Bengal to hit back.
Naorem Mahesh Singh got the ball on the left flank as the clock ticked over to the 16th minute and sent in a delicious cross. Semboi Haokip managed to get his head to it despite pressure from ATKMB defenders but his shot was saved by a diving Vishal Kaith in goal.
The supporters started to get restless and after East Bengal’s shout for a penalty, things started boiling over in the 23rd minute. Jordan O’Doherty’s fall in the box though was deemed legal by the referee.
Four minutes later, Joni Kauko’s attempt to get to a loose ball was cut short but a late challenge from Charis Kyriakou, for which he was shown a yellow card.
All hell broke loose barely a minute later as ATKMB and EBFC players got into a scuffle with the referee needing to pull out Brendan Hamill, Pritam Kotal and Cleiton Silva. Things did not calm down eventually.
The tackles had been flowing and challenges on either side had been dealt with an equal response.
Amidst all that, in the 32nd minute, Hugo Boumous danced his way past multiple defenders and was just a stroke away from handing ATKMB the lead but Sarthak Golui’s last-ditch tackle kept the scores level.
Two minutes later, Sarthak was at it again with another important tackle to stop a hurtling counter from ATK Mohun Bagan. There were more attacks from either side but none were productive as the teams went into the break goalless.
It was business as usual after the restart with both teams having a go at each other and rarely pulling their punches and kicks.
In the 56th minute, the mood in Salt Lake changed. The green and maroon half were delirious with joy as the red and gold brigade sunk deeper into the seats.
Hugo Boumous smashed the ball and the bounce took it past a hapless Kamaljit Singh with a shot from 25 yards out. Ten minutes later, Manvir doubled the lead. Hugo started off the move again as he found Dimitri Petratos but his attempt to take the shot was stopped only for the ball to deflect to the right where it found Manvir Singh.
By this time Hugo was a man possessed. Empowered by the fans behind his back, the French-Moroccan started pulling off outrageous tricks and flicks, including a no-look nutmeg.
With the match drawing to a close and the result looking certain, Juan Ferrando decided to go for a more defensive approach whereas Stephen Constantine looked around for someone to make a difference.
There was none as the game ended with the green and maroon half of the 62,542 in attendance leaving for home happy.
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