JOIN US10-man Sporting stun BFC at home
They say football is a game of taking your chances and the number of moves you make on the field doesn’t matter if the ball never finds the back of the net. And that was aptly the difference between the two sides as Bengaluru FC were subjected to a disappointing 1-2 loss at the hands of a 10-man Sporting Clube de Goa in the I-League here on Saturday.
Though they created chances aplenty at the Sree Kanteerava stadium their inability of find the back of the net, coupled with a number of jaw dropping saves from the visiting goalkeeper Arindam Bhattacharja meant the hosts finished second best behind a resolute Goan set-up who walked away with three points.
Bengaluru began to threaten the opposition goal from the very first minute.
Just like their first home game, the hosts once again could have the lead in the opening minute. But it was not meant to be as skipper Sunil Chhetri saw his attempt flash across the face of Bhattacharja’s goal.
The miss proved costly for the former champions as the visitors soon had their noses in front from their first attempt on goal in the ninth minute. Attempting a run into the opposition half, defender John Johnson let the ball roll away from him. Latching on to the ricochet, Nicholas Fernandes found Odafa Okolie and the lanky Nigerian didn’t disappoint as he blasted the ball into the top right corner of the goal beating an outstretched Amrinder Singh.
Not deterred by the early goal, Bengaluru continued to try and find an equaliser. They created plenty of chances and also enjoyed a numerical advantage on the pitch as Dharmaraj Ravanan was sent off to a second yellow card in the 21st minute. But their strike force consisting of Chhetri, Vineeth and the North Korean import Kim Song Yong, however, cut a disappointing figure as the visitors head into the break with a slender one goal lead.
Returning with more purpose in their play and a slightly tweaked formation in the second half, Bengaluru once again, was the superior side on the field. And their persistence finally paid dividends in the 65th minute. Midfielder Alwyn George, a live wire for prolonged periods of the game, got past his marker with ease to find Vineeth. The Kerala striker was on the mark and equalised for the home side.
The parity, though, didn’t last long as Odafa scored his second of the night in the 73rd minute with a blinder of a shot that flew into the Bengaluru goal from 25 yards out to restore Sporting’s lead.
It was a tense finish as the visitors had to see off a few tenacious attempts in the dying moments of the game.