Durand Cup: Mohun Bagan storms into quarter-finals

Mohun Bagan Super Giant sealed top spot in Group A and booked their place in the quarter-finals of the 135th IndianOil Durand Cup with a commanding 6-0 victory over CISF Protectors at the Kishore Bharati Krirangan on Monday. Sahal Abdul Samad stole the limelight with a scintillating first-half hat-trick, while Manvir Singh, Jamie Maclaren and Tekcham Abhishek Singh also found the scoresheet as the Mariners completed a perfect group-stage campaign with three wins from three matches.

Already on six points from their opening two matches, Panagiotis Dilimperis’ side entered the contest with a quarterfinal spot confirmed, while CISF Protectors were looking to end their campaign on a positive note after back-to-back defeats.

Early in the contest, the CISF defence, marshalled by captain Mohammad Khalid, stood firm against wave after wave of Mohun Bagan attacks.

Subhasish Bose tested the goalkeeper with a low long-range effort in the ninth minute, but the Mariners’ relentless pressure eventually paid dividends in the 17th minute. Dejan Dražic produced a superb defence-splitting pass from inside his own half to release Tekcham Abhishek Singh on the right. His shot took a deflection into the path of Liston Colaco, who unselfishly squared the ball for Sahal Abdul Samad to apply the finishing touch.

Two minutes later, the Mariners doubled their lead with another slick attacking move. This time Manvir Singh threaded a delightful pass into the path of Dejan on the right, and the Serbian calmly squared the ball across for Sahal to tap home his second goal in as many minutes.

Mohun Bagan continued to carve open the CISF defence, with Manvir first firing straight at the goalkeeper before making amends in the 24th minute. Tekcham Abhishek Singh whipped in an inviting cross from the right and the striker controlled brilliantly before finishing confidently to make it 3-0.

The Mariners almost added another when Manvir capitalised on a misplaced pass and burst into the penalty area, only for Muneesh Kumar to produce a vital touch that prevented an almost certain own goal.

Sahal then completed a memorable first-half hat-trick in spectacular fashion in the 37th minute. Picking up possession near the halfway line, the midfielder surged forward, glided past defenders with sublime skill and calmly slotted a right-footed finish beyond the goalkeeper to crown an outstanding individual performance. Subhasish Bose nearly created a fifth moments later with a teasing cross that brushed the hair of Manvir Singh before drifting wide, while Mehtab Singh produced an important defensive intervention to halt a rare CISF counter-attack.

The Mariners headed into the interval with a commanding 4-0 advantage after dominating possession with 75 per cent of the ball, while the Protectors managed just one off-target effort during the opening 45 minutes.

Dilimperis made four changes at half-time, introducing Asish Rai, Alex Saji, Kiyan Nassiri Giri and Abhishek Dhananjay Suryavanshi to freshen up the side, resulting in an all-Indian line-up for the second half.

Mohun Bagan continued to create opportunities after the restart, although their finishing briefly deserted them. Manvir narrowly missed the target after attempting to chip the advancing Raj Kumar Mahato before heading another excellent Asish Rai cross wide.

Liston also saw an effort blocked after another dangerous delivery from Alex Saji, while Raj Kumar denied Manvir once again after the striker took one touch too many inside the area.

The fifth goal finally arrived in the 68th minute through another moment of brilliance from Sahal. The midfielder produced a sublime no-look through ball that released substitute Jamie Maclaren, who opened up his body before calmly slotting his finish through the legs of the goalkeeper.

Five minutes later, Mohun Bagan added a sixth. Liston Colaco combined neatly with Tekcham Abhishek Singh, whose perfectly timed run into the penalty area ended with a precise finish into the roof of the net.

CISF came close to grabbing a consolation in the closing stages when Jacob C delivered an inviting cross that substitute Gaurab Das could not direct on target. Das later tested Syed Zahid Hussain with a powerful free-kick, while Gurpal Singh forced the Mohun Bagan goalkeeper into an excellent save deep into stoppage time after capitalising on a defensive lapse.

At the other end, Liston continued to search for a goal but was denied repeatedly, first firing high over the bar before directing another effort straight at the goalkeeper in the closing moments.

The comprehensive victory sees Mohun Bagan Super Giant finish their Group A campaign with a perfect record of three wins from three matches, comfortably securing top spot and a place in the quarter-finals. CISF Protectors, meanwhile, bow out of the 135th IndianOil Durand Cup without registering a point.