East Bengal wasted opportunities galore as bottom-rung Sporting Clube de Goa held the local side 1-1 in their round 23 I-League match at Yuba Bharati Krirangan here today.
|Last Updated: Apr 30, 2010, 10:27 PM IST|Source: Bureau
Kolkata: East Bengal wasted opportunities galore as bottom-rung Sporting Clube de Goa held the local side 1-1 in their round 23 I-League match at Yuba Bharati Krirangan here today.
Sporting Clube de Goa drew the first blood through a
Joseph Pereira goal in the 12th minute while Syed Rahim Nabi
scored the equaliser in the 40th minute.
East Bengal now have 25 points from 21 matches, while
Sporting collected 21 from 23 matches.
Without their star striker Bhaichung Bhutia, East Bengal
missed at least a dozen chances even as the home side
dominated the proceedings right from the start in a match that
saw the return of captain Rahim Nabi and Yusif Yakubu after an
injury lay-off.
Abel Hammond and Yusif Yakubu lacked the spark upfront as
Sporting Clube de Goa went 1-0 up with Pereira scoring from
a through pass in what appeared a defensive lapse by Saumik
Dey.
Three minutes later, Yakubu had a brilliant chance but he
failed to convert the Nabi pass from the left.
With East Bengal having the maximum ball possession, they
got another chance in the 18th minute but there was no damage
to the Goan club as Nabi wasted the opportunity. East Bengal kept on attacking but they lacked the spark
as they remained goalless in front of a sparse home crowd.
In the 37th minute, Beingaichho Beiokhokhei had a
one-on-one with the Sporting goalkeeper Felix D`Souza but the
result was the same much to the disappointment of the local
supporters.
The local giants, however, breathed a sigh of relief when
Nabi finally found the back of the net to score the equaliser.
After the changeover, East Bengal brought in Sanju
Pradhan and Alvito D`Cunha to mount pressure but there was no
change in the script even as they had better share of chances.
In the 59th minute, Yakubu failed to score from a Hammond
cross despite being in a strong position. Moments later,
Hammond got a chance but the Ghanaian too failed to score from
an angular shot.
Beiokhokhei had a chance in the 64th minute but Sporting
goalkeeper Felix had a diving effort to save it.
Luck too deserted East Bengal. In the 73rd minute, from a
Saumik centre, Yakubu headed but only to find the shot blocked
by the post.
Mehtab Hossain, having placed himself in an advantageous
position, tried to score from the rebound but he only managed
to shoot directly to the Sporting goalkeeper.
Felix was adjudged Man of the Match.
PTI
By clicking “Accept All Cookies”, you agree to the storing of cookies on your device to enhance site navigation, analyze site usage, and assist in our marketing efforts.
Cookies Setting
By clicking “Accept All Cookies”, you agree to the storing of cookies on your device and the processing of information obtained via those cookies (including about your preferences, device and online activity) by us and our commercial partners to enhance site navigation, personalise ads, analyze site usage, and assist in our marketing efforts. More information can be found in our Cookies and Privacy Policy. You can amend your cookie settings to reject non-essential cookies by clicking Cookie Settings below.
Manage Consent Preferences
Strictly Necessary Cookies
These cookies are necessary for the website to function and cannot be switched off in our systems. They are usually only set in response to actions made by you which amount to a request for services, such as setting your privacy preferences, logging in or filling in forms. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not then work or you may not be able to login.
Functional Cookies
These cookies enable the website to provide enhanced functionality and personalisation. They may be set by us or by third party providers whose services we have added to our pages. If you do not allow these cookies then some or all of these services may not function properly.
Targeting Cookies
These cookies may be set through our site by our advertising partners. They may be used by those companies to build a profile of your interests and show you relevant adverts on other sites. They are also used to limit the number of times you see an advert as well as help measure the effectiveness of an advertising campaign. They do not store directly personal information, but are based on uniquely identifying your browser and internet device. If you do not allow these cookies, you will experience less targeted advertising.
Performance Cookies
These cookies allow us to count visits and traffic sources so we can measure and improve the performance of our site. They help us to know which pages are the most and least popular and see how visitors move around the site. All information these cookies collect is aggregated and therefore anonymous. If you do not allow these cookies we may not know when you have visited our site, and may not be able to monitor its performance.