Calcutta: Chief minister Mamata Banerjee welcomed football clubs of India and the Bangladesh Army team in her address during the inaugural ceremony of Durand Cup at the Salt Lake Stadium on Thursday.
Mohun Bagan Super Giant, fielding an all-Indian eleven with only two first-team players, routed the armymen from Bangladesh 5-0 to begin their campaign in style.
The contest was killed in the first half itself as Bagan took a 3-0 lead. Two more came after the change of ends. At the stroke of half-time, the visitors went a man down when Mijanur Rahman was shown a red card for his second bookable offence.
The first goal came in the 14th minute. Manvir Singh failed to tap in Ravi Bahadur Rana’s cross from the right but Liston Colaco was at the right place to prod it home. Colaco’s future in Bagan was in doubt after a forgettable last season but on Thursday he showed if given a chance he could prove quite a handful for the rival teams.
Colaco was everywhere. His speed stirred the rival defence and Colaco had a role in all the five goals his team scored. Such was his impact that time and again the Bangladesh players pulled his shirt to stop him from inflicting more damage. Justifiably, he was adjudged the Man of the Match.
The second came in the 30th minute. Mijanur Rahman tripped Lalrinliana Hnamte inside the box and referee Rahul Gupta did not have any hesitation in pointing to the dreaded spot. Manvir Singh had no problem in converting the chance.
The third came 10 minutes later. Following a delightful link-up between Colaco and Suhail Bhat, the latter, despite being under pressure from his Bangladeshi marker, hit the bullseye with a lovely chip.
The striker from Srinagar on Thursday was included in the probables list for India’s AFC under-23 Asian Cup qualifiers and could not have found a better way to celebrate the good news.
One of the revelations in the Bagan shirt in the local league, Suhail picked up an injury in the second half and was replaced by Ningombam Engson Singh.
The fourth goal came two minutes before the hour mark. From Colaco’s free-kick from the left, Manvir Singh’s back-heel found Lalrinliana Hnamte, whose right footer crashed into the net. In the 89th minute, Kiyan Nassiri, who came in place of Singh, found his name on the scoresheet.
The Bangladesh team’s goalkeeper, Ashraful Islam Rana, failed to gather Colaco’s shot and Nassiri slotted it home. It was one-way traffic. Bangladesh Army have eight players from Dhaka Mohammedan Sporting but there was hardly any understanding. The early goal and the penalty within the first two quarters were enough for the visitors to cave in meekly.
Bagan have a busy schedule now.
On Saturday they play United Sports Club in a CFL Premier Division match and then take on RoundGlass Punjab FC in the Durand Cup on Monday. It remains to be seen how the Bagan team management uses its resources.
New signing
Bagan have signed Spanish defender Hector Yuste. He spent two seasons at Cyprus club AC Omonia, winning the Cypriot Cup twice and the 2021 Cypriot Super Cup. During his time there, he also played in the Uefa Europa League and Uefa Europa Conference League group stages.
The 35-year-old was a regular face in the Spanish second division, playing over 200 matches in the league.
Hector comes from the youth academy of Real Murcia and Cartagena FC, where he managed to get a professional contract which kicked off his career in the Spanish league.
