East Bengal end 19-year wait to enter Durand Cup finals
East Bengal came from behind to book their place in the 2023 Durand Cup final after beating NorthEast United on penalties (5-4) as they were tied 2-2 at full-time. The Highlanders had the lead for most of the match before the Red and Golds scored twice- via an own-goal from Dinesh Singh and a header from Nandhakumar Sekar which forced the penalty shootout.
East Bengal's 19-year wait for the Durand Cup final ends
Before this, East Bengal reached the finals of the Durand Cup 26 times, only behind Mohun Bagan (28) in this regard. They have won 16 titles, a joint record with the Mariners. The last time they won the title was in 2004, beating Mohun Bagan 2-1 in the finals. However, it was their last entry into the finals of the competition.
How did the match pan out?
NEUFC took the lead in the 22nd minute when Phalguni Singh's ball was headed home by Miguel Zabaco. In the second half, Phalguni turned scorer with a brilliant cut-in goal in the 57th minute. EB pulled one back in the 77th minute when Mahesh Singh's effort got deflected off Dinesh. Zabaco was sent off before Nandhakumar headed home the equalizer to force the penalties.
Summary of the penalty shootout
Cleiton Silva handed EB the lead in the shootout, while Ibson Melo made it 1-1. Saul Crespo made it 2-1 before Gani Nigam found the back of the net. Borje Herrera converted as Prabhshukhan Gill denied Parthib Gogoi. However, the penalty was re-taken but Gogoi struck the post. Mahesh and Pragyan Gogoi converted before Nandhakumar slammed home the winning kick to make it 5-3.
Phalguni Singh ran the show for NorthEast United
Albeit the defeat, Phalguni was the star of the show for the Highlanders. It was from his cross that Zabaco headed NEUFC to the lead, and later he skipped past multiple defenders with his cut-in before slamming it past Gill on goal to make it 2-0. He made some scintillating runs throughout the match. Phalguni ended the tournament with two goals and an assist.
Nandhakumar Sekar scored another vital goal
Nandhakumar is proving to be a fan favorite for the Red and Gold Brigade as he finds another crucial goal to equalize the match in added time to force the penalties. The winger also scored the winning goal in the Kolkata Derby, which helped them top the group. Nandhakumar has scored twice in five matches in the Durand Cup.
First Durand Cup semi-final for NorthEast United
NorthEast United had a horrendous Durand Cup last year as they finished fourth in a five-team group, losing three out of four matches. Their only win came against Sudeva Delhi, while they lost to Kerala Blasters, Odisha FC, and Army Green. Therefore, this was the first time they entered the Durand Cup knockouts and also reached the semi-finals and went down after fighting valiantly.
