I-League: Round 4 Review – East Bengal live up to favourites tag

Overview

East Bengal thumped Lajong in ShillongPhoto Credit: Shillong Lajong FC

Round four of the Airtel I-League saw 15 goals in six matches and four of them came in one match and from one team. That team in question is AFC Cup semi-finalists East Bengal who very much lived up to their favourites tag by thumping Lajong 4-0 in Shillong. It was Brazilian coach Marcos Falopa’s first I-League game in charge and he couldn’t have wished for a better start. The 64-year-old has been in the shadow of Trevor Morgan’s achievements but he has already become the first coach to guide East Bengal to an away win in Shillong.

The best part of East Bengal’s victory was the fact that it came in the absence of rested first-term regulars like Mehtab Hossain, Arnab Mondal, Naoba Singh and Saumik Dey. Falopa was heavily criticised for that decision by the Bengali media of Kolkata but has now proved his critics wrong and would look to build on that impressive start by winning their next I-League game against Dempo before the historic AFC Cup semi-final second leg against Kuwait SC in Kolkata on October 22.

The result and performance against Lajong clearly showed the strength in depth in East Bengal’s squad and the red-and-gold brigade will be encouraged by the fact that none of the other 12 clubs seem to have enough quality in their squads. That was noticeable even in the stalemate between Goan giants Dempo and Salgaocar as both clubs could only bring on young or inexperienced substitutes.

Defending champions Churchill Brothers remained winless after four matches as they could only come from behind to earn a point against newly-promoted Rangdajied United in Shillong. Mumbai FC continued their unbeaten start with a draw against United Sports Club but debutants Bengaluru FC and last season’s runners-up Pune FC maintained their brilliant starts to the season.

Bengaluru recorded their third straight win with a 2-1 victory over Mohammedan Sporting to go three points clear at the top, albeit having played a game more than joint-second placed teams Pune FC and Salgaocar. The result in Bangalore saw Mohammedan Sporting suffer their third consecutive defeat with pressure mounting on the coach Moshood Bola Abdulaziz. Another Kolkata club who were beaten in this round was Mohun Bagan as their ten men came up short against Pune in a 2-0 loss. Despite having a young and new-look squad Pune look good to mount a title challenge while Mohun Bagan continue to struggle in the absence of their injured captain Odafa Okolie.

Results

Shillong Lajong 0-4 East Bengal; Salgaocar 1-1 Dempo; Mumbai FC 1-1 United Sports Club; Rangdajied United 1-1 Churchill Brothers; Bengaluru FC 2-1 Mohammedan Sporting; Pune FC 2-0 Mohun Bagan

Game of the round

Salgaocar 1-1 Dempo

Photo Credit: AIFF Media

The Goan derby ended all square and quality wise was the best game of matchday four as both teams had numerous neat moves in the match. Although it wasn’t really a game of two halves, Salgaocar looked better in the first period while Dempo improved in the second half. So a draw was a fair reflection of the game and it kept the five-time record India champions Dempo winless after four rounds. Coach Arthur Papas was once again absent as he is in Australia due to visa issues and it doesn’t get any easier for Dempo as they next have an away match against East Bengal.

Salgaocar started the game very well with some very good movement on the wings as Dempo looked vulnerable in defence once again. But Derrick Pereira’s side were very wasteful with their final ball and finishing with Darryl Duffy’s goal coming thanks to a deflection. In the second half, the tempo of Salgaocar’s play dropped perhaps because they had one day less to prepare for the game something which coach Pereira pointed out after the match. That allowed Dempo to dictate the proceedings and they equalised late on through Jeje Lalpekhlua as India international Karanjit Singh conceded for the first time this season.

The lack of strength in depth in Salgaocar’s squad was evident in the second half as they could only bring on inexperienced players like Lenny Pereira, Brian Mascarenhas. Dempo too didn’t have too many options on the bench to bring on and change the complexion of this contest but Beto, Clifford Miranda and Jeje in particular stepped up and helped the Panjim-based club avoid their second loss of the campaign. This fixture showed that both teams have good first choice lineups but could fall short in the title race as they don’t have a big squad to choose from.

Result of the round

Pune FC 2-0 Mohun Bagan

Pune FC were too good for 10-man Mohun BaganPhoto Credit: Pune FC

When Derrick Pereira left Pune FC at the end of last season, it was natural for even the most ardent Pune fan to have question marks about their immediate future on the pitch. Derrick had done a remarkable job with a modest squad so it was always going to be difficult for his replacement to maintain those standards. But thanks to some shrewd foreign signings and the emergence of academy players like Nikhil Kadam, Dutchman Mike Snoei has been able to enjoy a perfect start to his Pune FC reign and the 2-0 home win over Mohun Bagan yesterday was another top result and performance.

From the very first minute, Pune FC were on the front foot as they looked to take the initiative against a cautious Mohun Bagan side who were once again without their skipper and talisman Odafa. Despite their territorial domination Pune didn’t create too many clear cut chances until the sending off of Mohun Bagan’s Echezona Anyichie (popular known as Eche) and could have been behind early in the second half when Eric Muranda wasted a golden opportunity. But Snoei’s side did well to use their numerical advantage and opened up Mohun Bagan completely in the final quarter of the game.

The result and performance was a good indication of each side’s potential this season. Like most teams, Pune FC lack a big squad but have a very good mixture of foreign and young Indian talent along with the experience of Arata Izumi and Anas Edathodika. Mohun Bagan at times don’t even look like a top half team without Odafa and would be hoping to see their skipper back in action as soon possible.

Best Players

Foreigner – James Moga (East Bengal)

Photo Credit: eastbengaltherealpower.com

The South Sudan international had a dream I-League debut for East Bengal as he bagged a brace against Shillong Lajong. Moga scored in each half and for the first time combined well with Edeh Chidi since his move to East Bengal this season. With the right service, he will definitely have a prolific season.

Indian – Jeje Lalpepkhlua (Dempo)

The India international was playing out of position on the wing but still was looking the most likely player to bring Dempo back into the contest when they were trailing against Salgaocar. Jeje showed great composure to finish the chance that brought the equaliser and would now hope to play upfront in the next game.

Controversy

There was no major organisational goof up in this round but there was an ugly incident in the game between Pune FC and Mohun Bagan game as Eche was sent off for retaliation against Raul Fabiani, who had initially fouled the Nigerian defender with a high foot. Mohun Bagan still feel hard done by that decision with coach Bencherifa claiming it to be the decisive moment of the match. Snoei has responded by calling Bencherifa ‘a bad loser’ and the war of words will surely not end there.

Table

Team	Played	Won	Drawn	Lost	Points	GD
Bengaluru FC	4	3	1	0	10	+5
Pune FC	3	2	1	0	7	+4
Salgaocar	3	2	1	0	7	+4
United SC	4	2	1	1	7	+3
Mumbai FC	4	1	3	0	6	+2
Sporting Clube	3	1	1	1	4	-1
Shillong Lajong	4	1	1	2	4	-2
East Bengal	1	1	0	0	3	+4
Dempo	4	0	3	1	3	-3
Mohun Bagan	3	0	2	1	2	-2
Churchill Brothers	4	0	2	2	2	-3
Rangdajied United	4	0	2	2	2	-5
Mohammedan Sporting	3	0	0	3	0	-6