I-League: Round 7 Review – East Bengal bounce back

Result of the round

Sporting Clube 1-3 Mohammedan Sporting

Mohammedan Sporting recorded their second straight away winPhoto Credit: AIFF Media

Mohun Bagan and Salgaocar also recorded notable away wins but Mohammedan Sporting’s 3-1 victory over Sporting Clube stands out as the newly-promoted Kolkata club look to be finally finding their feet in the top flight.

It is no secret anymore that the Mohammedan Sporting didn’t have much balance and quality in their side at the start of the campaign as besides the four foreigners, they lacked experience and also had too many wide players in the squad.

The signings of the five IMG-Reliance contracted players addressed some of those problems but only increased the pressure on coach Moshood Bola Abdulaziz to deliver the results. An away win over Rangdajied United got them off the mark in round five but a goalless draw against United SC, who played the last quarter of the game with ten men, on matchday six was a setback for Abdulaziz.

Anything less than a win in this game would have increased the uncertainty over his job but an inspired showing from their foreigners, Josimar in particular, saw Abdulaziz guide the Kolkata giants to their second straight away win. Brazilian defender Luciano Sobrosa also produced another solid display and his return to full fitness could see Mohammedan Sporting find some consistency now.

Sporting Clube had come into this game on the back of three straight wins so Mohammedan Sporting were up against it but they rode their luck a bit and took their chances to record three precious points. Some weaknesses were evident in this match also as Mohammedan Sporting never really controlled the game but the whole team will take confidence from their efficiency and look to build on that for the rest of the season.

Best Players

Foreigner – Josimar (Mohammedan Sporting)

The Brazilian is no stranger to Indian football having had prolific spells at United SC and Salgaocar. While all the attention has been around Penn Orji and Tolgay Ozbey, Josimar has been the club’s most consistent performer with five goals already including the match-winning brace against Sporting Clube in this round.

Indian – Mehtab Hossain (East Bengal)

It was a near vintage display from midfield general Mehtab Hossain

It was a near vintage display from Mehtab as he negated the threat of Bengaluru’s midfield and made them look ordinary. The India international was tenacious as he broke down Bengaluru’s attacks with well-timed tackles and some occasional fouls. Like so many times in the last few years, the midfield general dictated his team’s play and also protected the back four.

Controversy

Once again this column involves a Kolkata club with the spotlight being on the refereeing. The incident happened in Kalyani where United SC hosted Salgaocar on Sunday. The home side feel they were robbed of a genuine goal as Eric Brown’s strike from distance was ruled out for interference of play by Ranti Martins who was inside the box in an offside position as the ball went past Salgaocar custodian Karanjit Singh.

United SC claim that Ranti wasn’t in the line of the shot and thus cannot be considered active but the linesman thought otherwise as he flagged for offside. It is one of those decisions that are rarely given these days and United SC have every right to feel hard done by. The incident took place when United SC were 1-0 down in the first period and it deflated their spirits a bit as they never really tested Karanjit after that with Salgaocar scoring again late in the second half to run out 2-0 winners.

The Table

Team	Played	Won	Drawn	Lost	Points	GD
Salgaocar	6	4	1	1	13	+7
Pune FC	5	4	1	0	13	+6
Bengaluru FC	6	4	1	1	13	+5
Sporting Clube	6	3	1	2	10	+1
United SC	7	2	3	2	9	+1
Shillong Lajong	7	2	3	2	9	-1
Mohun Bagan	6	2	2	2	8	-1
Mohammedan Sporting	6	2	1	3	6	-1
East Bengal	3	2	0	1	6	+4
Mumbai FC	7	1	3	3	6	-2
Dempo	6	1	3	2	6	-3
Churchill Brothers	6	0	3	3	3	-4
Rangdajied United	7	0	2	5	2	-12