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Jamshedpur FC’s playoff hopes took another hit as they suffered a 1-2 loss against SC East Bengal in the 85th match of the 2020-21 Indian Super League (ISL). Jamshedpur FC centre-back Peter Hartley scored a late goal, but SC East Bengal withstood the pressure to register a fine victory at the Fatorda Stadium in Margao, Goa.
First-half
Assistant manager Tony Grant signaled his intentions right from the start by playing two Indian central defenders in SC East Bengal’s back-line. Raju Gaikwad was in the thick of things as he clashed with Nerijus Valskis to concede a free-kick. Jamshedpur FC got another free-kick soon, but Valskis' effort went wide.
SC East Bengal eventually started to threaten, with Narayan Das delivering a dangerous cross for Anthony Pilkington. But Stephen Eze came to his team’s rescue with a vital interception. However, the Red and Gold brigade did score a minute later, as Matti Steinmann came up with a fine glancing header off Narayan’s corner-kick.
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Jamshedpur FC got a few half-chances, but they lacked quality in the final third. The game became end to end with SC East Bengal threatening from a corner-kick, while Alex Lima’s shot at the other end went wide.
Jamshedpur FC full-back Laldinliana Renthlei was forced to quickly block a Bright Enobakhare shot after Jacques Maghoma set him up. SC East Bengal also manufactured a nice free-kick routine for Pilkington to come up with a fierce strike, but it never dipped enough to trouble TP Rehenesh. In injury-time, Matti Steinmann directed his free header wide off a Raju Gaikwad throw-in.
Second-half
After a fantastic first 45 minutes, Narayan Das started the second-half brightly too with a promising set-piece delivery. However, it didn't result in something productive as Steinmann couldn’t get to the end of the ball, while Daniel Fox went down looking for a penalty, with the referee waving play on. A few minutes later, Narayan produced a stinging shot at TP Rehenesh after Bright released him into a lot of space on the left flank. At the other end, Jamshedpur FC were unlucky as Valskis’ shot struck the post.
Anthony Pilkington soon rubbed salt into Jamshedpur FC’s wounds by doubling SC East Bengal's lead. Pilkington smashed the ball past TP Rehenesh after Steinnman played a fine pass. The Irishman could have scored another, but his effort hit the woodwork. Just when it looked like SC East Bengal would easily win the game, Jamshedpur FC pulled one back through Hartley, who met Isaac Vanmalsawma's fine cross with a superb header.
SC East Bengal were made to sweat even more when Valskis almost scored in injury-time, but Subrata came up with one of the saves of the match. There were even appeals for hand-ball when Sarthak Golui’s clearance off a Aitor Monroy corner-kick possibly clipped Raju Gaikwad’s arm. The Men of Steel got another set-piece in the last few seconds of the match, but SC East Bengal stood tall and cleared the danger to round off the 2-1 victory.
Who was the Hero of the Match?
German midfielder Matti Steinmann bagged the Hero of the Match award, following a very neat performance against Jamshedpur FC. Playing in a more advanced role than usual, Steinmann showed his versatility by being a constant threat for the Jamshedpur FC defenders.
The 26-year-old put SC East Bengal ahead early in the game with a superbly placed header. He also bagged an assist with a lovely ball to find Anthony Pilkington, who scored the team’s second goal. When SC East Bengal needed to be compact in the final few minutes, Steinmann showed his defensive prowess too and helped his side bag all three points.
