Airtel I-League: Pune FC go down 1-3 to East Bengal

Pune FC went down fighting 1-3 to East Bengal in an I-League Round 3 encounter at the Salt Lake Stadium in Kolkata on Saturday.

Striker Chidi Edeh (18^th minute) opened scoring before winger Lalrindika Ralte (43^rd) doubled the home side’s lead going into the break. Substitute Mirjan Pavlovic (58^th) pulled one back for Pune FC early in the second half before Ralte (68^th) completed his brace and sealed victory for East Bengal.

Pune FC dominated for extended periods and created a host of chances throughout the game, but at the end it was East Bengal who converted their chances and rewarded themselves with three points.

The loss was Pune FC’s second consecutive in the I-League saw them stay in the sixth place with 31 points.

Coach Mike Snoei made four changes to the squad handing starts to goalkeeper Amrinder Singh, defenders Srikanth Ramu, Nicoalu Borges and playmaker Riga Mustapha.

The opening quarter saw both sides engaged in end-to end action. However, Pune FC kept possession and created a couple of chances with attacker Riga going closest, only for his shot to be deflected for a corner.

Despite Pune FC dominating proceedings, it was East Bengal who took the lead in the 18^th minute. Right-back Srikanth’s slip inside the box while clearing playmaker Ryuji Sueoka's cross in from from the right, saw the ball falling for Chidi on the left. The veteran striker created space and fired home a low effort at the near post.

At the other end, medio Arata Izumi blasted his effort over from inside the box after Gurjinder Kumar did well to chest down skipper Douhou Pierre's cross in from the right.

Five minutes past the half hour mark, Pune FC once again went close. After Douhou sent Gabriel Fernandes clear on the right, the winger beat a defender and let fly from the edge of the box. However, East Bengal custodian Abhra Mondal did well to gather the ball.

Seven minutes later, it was Abhra who once again denied Pune FC. This time, the ex-Pune FC custodian palmed away Gabriel’s powerful left-footed attempt from distance.

Just as Pune FC surged ahead, East Bengal doubled their lead a minute later. A breakaway move saw Sueoka beat the offside trap and run clear in the Pune FC half with the defense way up on the halfline. As he closed in on the box, the Japanese squared it to Ralte on the run who tapped in to an empty net to put the hosts 2-0 up going into the break.

Coach Snoei then made the first change bringing in striker Pavlovic in place of Nicolau at restart to add more firepower up front. The substitute made his mark and set up Riga two minutes in only for Abhra to save the Dutchman’s low effort from the edge of the box.

Ten minutes later, it was Amrinder Singh who kept Pune FC in the game saving Arnab Mondal's header from point-blank range on a corner kick.

At the other end, Pune FC pulled one back through Pavlovic. Playmaker Riga played Pavlovic through on the right inside the box and the Australian hammered his first time effort into the roof of the net from a tight angle.

The goal motivated Pune FC who kept on pushing ahead and almost camped in the home-side’s half in search of the equaliser.

However, it was the hosts who once again scored against the run of play to restore their two goal cushion ten minutes later.

As Pune FC pushed ahead putting crosses inside the rival box, the East Bengal defense managed to clear the ball. Chidi chased down a long clearance at the other end on the left and found Cavin Lobo who squared the ball to Ralte on the edge of the box. The midfielder blasted a powerful shot past Amrinder to complete his brace.

Pune FC didn’t back down and kept on pressing the hosts. However, below par finishing in the final third didn’t help their cause as the game ended 3-1.