KOLKATA, INDIA: East Bengal defeated NorthEast United FC 3-0 in their opening fixture of the ongoing Indian Super League at the Salt Lake Stadium (VYBK) in Kolkata on Monday, February 16. Newly-signed striker Youssef Ezzejjari scored a brace (65′, 70′) to help the home team ward off the questions posed by the visitors. Miguel Ferreira then sealed the win with a late strike in stoppage time.
East Bengal dominated proceedings all evening and were not threatened in the least by the visitors, who were reeling under the loss of their talisman, Alaaeddine Ajaraie, who went on loan to Indonesia due to the uncertainty regarding the ISL. Despite keeping their fair share of possession (49%), NorthEast were unable to be incisive inside the box – just one shot on target and no chances created. Their performance in the final third, in general, left a lot to be desired.
Bipin Singh was the creator-in-chief for East Bengal
East Bengal, on the other hand, constantly threatened their visitors, with wingers Bipin Singh and Nandhakumar Sekar boasting passing accuracies of 83% and 89%, respectively. The former, operating on the left flank, created three chances for his side and even bagged the assist to Ezzejjari’s first goal.
Floating a cross into the centre of the box, Bipin watched with anticipation as the Spaniard headed it into the back of the net. Ezzejjari doubled the hosts’ advantage five minutes later, and the game was put to bed in stoppage time by midfielder Ferreira’s left-footed strike across the goalkeeper after being set up by PV Vishnu. With this victory, the Torchbearers picked up three points, leaving the Highlanders sans any.
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