The performance of young striker Bidyasagar Singh has been the biggest positive for East Bengal side in the ongoing Durand Cup.
Durand Cup 2019 1st Semifinal: East Bengal vs Gokulam Kerala. (Photo: Facebook/@thedurandcup)
East Bengal and Gokulam Kerala FC, the two most impressive teams of the ongoing Durand Cup, lock horns in the first semifinal at the Salt Lake Stadium on Wednesday.
The thing that the two teams have in common is that both have managed to score the most number of goals during the league stage. While East Bengal have scored 10 times in three matches, Gokulam have scored 11 goals. Both the teams have conceded just one goal each. And hence the goal difference for Gokulum is 10 and that of East Bengal is 9.
The Red and Gold brigade began their campaign with a 2-0 win over Army Red. In the second game, they simply outplayed the reserve side of Jamshedpur FC with a thumping 6-0 margin.
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In their third and last match of the league stage, they faced Bengaluru FC which pushed them back with a leading goal only in the 17th minute.
But the Alejandro Menendez-led side came back strongly after the break to seal the fate of the game with two goals in a span of 15 minutes.
The performance of young striker Bidyasagar Singh has been the biggest positive for East Bengal side in the ongoing Durand Cup. Bidyasagar has scored five goals in three games.
However, the team’s actual test is yet to come when they face Gokulam Kerala whose Trinidadian striker Marcus Joseph has scored eight goals in the league stage and is favourite to win the golden boot.
It is to note that Joseph had scored hat-tricks in the last two matches and a brace in the tournament opener.
Moreover, Gokulam have recruited former Chennaiyin FC midfielder Bruno Pelisarri. The Brazilian, who did not start any of the league matches reportedly due to lack of match fitness, is all set to take the field against East Bengal.
Santiago Varela’s men have their eyes set on the prize and are set to fight tooth and nail against the Kolkata giants.
The match starts at 3pm (IST) on Star Sports 3, Star Sports 1 Bangla and Hotstar.
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