Kolkata Derby: East Bengal's Historic Victory Over Mohun Bagan Sealed By A Stunner That Turned Nandhakumar Into An Overnight 'Heartthrob'- WATCH The GOAL

East Bengal 1-0 Mohun Bagan: Nandhakumar Sekar's magnificent goal helped Emami East Bengal snap a losing streak against Mohun Bagan Super Giant. East Bengal defeated MBSG, the winner of the Indian Super League (ISL), by a solitary goal in the Durand Cup group-A encounter on Saturday.

Mohun Bagan SG vs East Bengal FC Durand Cup: At the Salt Lake Stadium on Saturday, Nandhakumar Sekar's magnificent goal helped Emami East Bengal snap a losing streak against Mohun Bagan Super Giant. East Bengal defeated MBSG, the winner of the Indian Super League (ISL), by a solitary goal in the Durand Cup group-A encounter thanks to the participation of the Chennai-born winger, maintaining its prospects of advancing to the quarterfinals of the competition.

With two games remaining in the regular season, EBFC has four points and needs to defeat I-League 2022–23 champion Punjab FC in the last group match in order to pass current leader MBSG (six points from three games) and go to the quarterfinals. In an effort to snap an eight-match losing streak against Mohun Bagan (dating back to January 2020), EBFC put up a strong display under the leadership of new Spanish coach Carles Cuadrat. In contrast to MBSG, which seemed to be experimenting by starting Armando Sadiku in place of Dimitrios Petratos, its normal forward, in the previous ISL season, it established the tone of the match with a better assault strategy.

The star-studded MBSG was held on a short leash by EBFC's performance despite fielding a newly-stringed lineup this season with 15 new signings. EBFC performed well to maintain its lead after the break despite missing a few opportunities in the first half. In contrast to the Red and Gold, the Mariners were unable to transition well, falling far behind. Cuadrat appeared to have the ideal players in place, since his team made effective use of the flanks to apply pressure to the opposition's defense.

WATCH THE GOAL:

More incursions by East Bengal into the Bagan area led to the counterattack that resulted in the game-winning goal by Nandhakumar in the 60th minute. After receiving a pass from Saul Crespo, he outmuscled his defender, Anirudh Thapa, and beat the opposing custodian, Vishal Kaith, with a left-footed shot that curled into the back of the net. The 27-year-old winger, who joined East Bengal this season from Odisha FC, quickly won the hearts of the supporters as their team earned its first derby victory in four and a half years.