Pune FC rallied from a goal down to beat Shillong lajong 3-1 and open their Hero Federation Cup football tournament campaign on a winning note at Tilak Stadium here on Monday.
Shillong lajong surged ahead in the 16th minute through lalrammuana when he ran through the rival defence and beat the advancing keeper before slotting the ball into the net in the Group B match.
Down by a goal, Pune FC regrouped and made attacking moves with Eric Brown, Zodhmingliana Ralte and Arata Izumi coming close to scoring until Anthony D’Souza uncorked a low drive to beat the keeper to his left a few minute before the break. Both the teams went into half time on even note.
The second half saw Pune FC dominating with Arata, Sueoka and Brown combining well as they kept up the pressure and took the lead in the 66th minute.
Eric Brown sent a through ball on the left and Anthony D’Souza took the shot which rival keeper Bhutia made a save only to see the ball go to lurking Arata who fired home from close range in the 66th minute
Eric then ensured that his team collect full points as he picked up the ball and ran into the rival box before taking a rasping shot to find the net.
Confident Bengaluru FC take on Mohun Bagan
A confident Bengaluru FC will be looking to score their second win as they face Mohun Bagan in a Group B league match of the Hero Federation Cup football on Tuesday. Bengaluru FC put in the hard yards in Sunday’s opener against Salgaocar when they came out 3-2 winners courtesy Sunil Chhetri’s double strikes and a Sean Rooney goal.
Bengaluru FC share a sort of history with Bagan as the Kolkata side were their opponents in the Blues’ first-ever competitive game. The result then was a 1-1 draw at the Bangalore Football Stadium in the I-league last season.
The last time the two sides met was in the league’s return leg where a thunderbolt from Rooney saw Bengaluru manage a 1-2 result at the Salt lake Stadium. Incidentally, Rooney had a goal in the draw at home too and would only be keen to make it three in as many games against the Kolkata club.
“I hadn’t realised that I’ve scored both times we’ve played Bagan and I would love to do it again. They are a good team but at the moment, there’s no team with confidence like ours,” said the Australian striker.
Bagan have done a fair bit of a rejig to their squad over the summer, shoring the attack with the signings of Cameroon international Pierre Boya, Haitian Sony Norde, Balwant Singh and Jeje lalpekhlua.
The Mariners have roped in defenders Bello Razaq, Anwar Ali and Dhanchandra Singh apart from bringing in young midfielder Souvik Chakraborty from United SC.
Asked what he thought about Sunday’s game, Rooney said the team was pleased with the work rate and the outcome. “It was an exciting first half and a compact show by the defence in the second. We dominated and came away with a win we deserved. About playing a second game in three days, I don’t see it as too much of a problem,” he added.