ISL 2017, Match 12: FC Goa vs Bengaluru FC, 5 Talking Points

#2 Red mist descends on Gurpreet and Bengaluru

The Bengaluru keeper was sent off for striking Lanzarote on the face

A few careless moments from the visitors saw them lose the ball, lose their keeper and lose their foothold in the game in the space of a few seconds.

It all began when Bengaluru gave the ball away in a very dangerous area just outside their box with two Goa players lurking nearby. Sensing a chance, the Goa players pressed for the ball and when the Bengaluru defence passed it back to keeper Gurpreet Singh Sandhu, Goa's Manuel Lanzarote went after it in an attempt to steal the ball as the pass was under-hit. Sandhu though managed to get the ball away just in the nick of time, but Lanzarote's momentum saw him step on Sandhu's left leg. It didn't look intentional.

Sandhu, though, took offence to it and the two got into a bit of argy-bargy in the box with the Bengaluru keeper raising his arm around Lanzarote's face. The latter, sensing an opportunity, fell to the ground clutching his face and soon the referee and players were gathered around the box resulting in the referee soon sending off Sandhu with a straight red for raising his hands.

The Bengaluru players' complaints were to no avail and since the foul was inside the box, it meant a penalty as well for Goa to rub salt into Bengaluru's wounds. Lanzarote stepped up and calmly slotted the ball in to give Goa a two-goal lead. Two up on the scoreboard and a man up on the pitch.

While Sandhu made minimal contact with Lanzarote, he gave the referee room to send him off by raising his arms which you cannot do and Bengaluru got themselves into the mess with their callous passing leading up to it. No one to blame, but themselves.