Bengaluru FC started life under new head coach Gerard Zaragoza by defeating Jamshedpur FC 1-0 in the Indian Super League at the Sree Kanteerava Stadium on Saturday.
It was a cagey affair from the beginning, with Jamshedpur FC goalkeeper TP Rehenesh starring with some important stops to keep the scoreline level. Rehenesh has been a notch above the other players from the Red Miners this season as the team’s struggles compound with one unfortunate result after another.
For Bengaluru FC, it was down to their experienced outfield duo of Sunil Chhetri and Javi Hernandez to get them out of the rut that they found themselves in. Chhetri stepped up to take a free kick in the 37th minute from nearly 30 yards out, and he shot it admirably well only for a full-stretched Rehenesh to dive and palm it away from the goal.
Hernandez, on the other hand, floated across the frontline discovering gaps in the Jamshedpur FC backline that they could pounce upon. On one such opportunity, a minute before the half-time break, he steered the ball on the right flank and played a lateral pass to Slavko Damjanović who was a few yards away from Rehenesh.
A heavy touch from Damjanović meant that the ball met the hand of Jamshedpur FC defender Elsinho, leading to a spot-kick for the home side.
Interestingly, it was Hernandez and not Sunil Chhetri who stepped up to assume duties from 12 yards away. Bengaluru FC had won only one game in the season before this, which was on October 4 against East Bengal FC. Hernandez was the difference between the two sides back then too, pulling off a fantastic overhead kick to hand them a 71st winner. Likewise, he hammered the ball into the bottom right corner to help the Blues get a foot ahead in the game.
Jamshedpur FC were desperate in their quest for a response, and they naturally looked up to their midfielder Jeremy Monzorro to produce something noteworthy in the final third. Monzorro was averaging 10.4 entries in the penalty box per game prior to this match in the current season, suggesting that he is someone who constantly finds a way past the opposition’s backline. Tonight, he tried to unleash another trick out of his armoury, attempting to lob the ball over Gurpreet Singh Sandhu, only for it to deflect off hitting the outside of the upper net in the 65th minute.
Zaragoza replaced Chhetri and Hernandez with the fresh legs of Monirul Molla and Harsh Patre in the second half, and the young duo worked their socks off to ensure that the lead didn’t desert them until the end of the match.
Mumbai, EB play out goalless draw
Meanwhile, a later match between Mumbai City and East Bengal ended in a goalless draw. With back-to-back draws, Mumbai remain fourth in the points table on 16 points while East Bengal have climbed to 7th position on 10 points.
