Chhetri, Kim, Shankar On Target; Len Scores First Goal For The Blues As Bagan Come Calling On Saturday

Bengaluru: Bengaluru FC went back to the top of the table with a 4-1 hammering of DSK Shivajians, in Bengaluru, on Wednesday night. The Blues handed gaffer Ashley Westwood the perfect reaction he demanded of them after last week’s disappointing loss to Sporting Clube de Goa. First half goals from Sunil Chhetri and Kim Song Yong and two in the second half from Shankar Sampingiraj and Seiminlen Doungel capped off an important result for Bengaluru who are on top of the table with 15 points from seven games.

With DSK sitting back and playing off Bengaluru FC just like Westwood suspected they would in his pre-match press conference, scoring from open play was always going to be difficult. And Chhetri grabbed the first chance from a freekick to put the Blues into the lead in the 15th minute. With the ball two yards ahead of the box, the distance seemed a tad too close but the skipper deftly bent his take over the wall and past an outstretched Subrata Paul, leaving the ’keeper no chance.

Bengaluru’s second came in the 33rd, and they didn’t need a set piece to this time. Rino Anto spotted enough bodies in the box to whip in a cross on the run and Kim rose to glance home a splendid header to make it 2-0.

Bengaluru FC’s blot on an otherwise perfect half came in additional time when former Blue Sampath Kuttymani sneaked in to tap home a Douhou Pierre cross from the right.

Refusing to let the late goal peg them back, Bengaluru were on the charge early in the second half. Picking the ball a little ahead of the half line on the left, Chhetri set off on a run that saw him beat three DSK players with pace and a trick before teeing up Shankar perfectly. In the box with the ball at his feet and under no pressure, Shankar shot agonizingly wide when he should have done better.

The midfielder however, made amends only minutes later when he was at hand to tap home the rebound from close after Beikhokhei Beingaichho’s low header from Rino’s cross was saved by Paul. Beingaichho, who made his first start of the campaign for the Blues, made a constant nuisance of himself to the Shivajians defence with a number of telling crosses and runs into the box.

Gauging the control his boys were in and with an eye on the big fixture this Saturday against Mohun Bagan in Bengaluru, Westwood deemed it safe to pull off Kim, Chhetri and John Johnson, replacing them with Len Doungel, CK Vineeth and NS Manju who took over seamlessly.

Len Doungel then put the icing on a solid performance scoring his first goal for Bengaluru FC since joining this summer when he latched on to what looked like an attempt on target from Vineeth before shooting past Paul. Doungel could have got his second with a minute to the clock when he was slid in by Beingaichho. But his chipped attempt to beat an onrushing Paul went inches wide.

In the day’s other game, Mohun Bagan were held to a 0-0 draw by Mumbai FC.