I-LEAGUE Media Team

KOLKATA: Kingfisher East Bengal clinched their second-straight victory at home, as they got past Shillong Lajong FC with a 2-1 scoreline at the Vivekananda Yuva Bharati Krirangan here on Sunday.

Both of the goals for KEB came from Nigerian forward Ranti Martins, while Cornell Glen scored the solitary goal for SLFC.

It was an insipid beginning to the match with neither teams carving out any chance for themselves in the opening exchanges.

Boithang Haokip had probably the first real chance of the match when Arnab Mondal gave away a freekick at about 30 yards after handling the ball. Haokip’s freekick though whizzed past the left of Subhasish’s goal and was merely inches wide.

We had to wait until the 23rd minute for the next chance as a long ball from Harmanjot Singh Khabra was brought down perfectly by Dudu Omagbemi before he laid it off to Ranti Martins who had made a parallel run to his left. Unfortunately though, Ranti failed to find the target as his shot went high and wide.

The Red and Golds however took the lead on the half hour mark as Ranti’s looping header beat Rehenesh, who was out of his line, all ends out. It was Bertos who combined brilliantly with Saumik Dey on the left, before finding the Nigerian with a perfect cross.

The goal seemed to transform the Kolkata side as they crafted a couple of chances after the goal. Just two minutes later Ranti found plenty of space down the left to run onto but wasted too much time in sending a cross in towards Dudu who was unmarked. When the cross did come in, Dudu failed to reach it at full stretch.

This was followed by last match’s hero, Abinash Ruidas who made a dazzling run on the left before he picked out Ranti in the box. Crowded out by defenders, Ranti passed it sideways to Dudu whose shot from close range was only deflected out for a corner.

Cornell Glen looked pretty isolated up front as Penn Orji dropped deeper and deeper to get hold of the ball and Thangboi Singto’s men went into the half time a goal down and looking listless in front of goal.

With Uilliams Souza being thrown in by Singto, Shillong started the second half on a more positive note and an early Uilliams corner was almost put into his own net by Ranti.

About ten minutes into the half, Khabra combined with Bertos on the right and put in a measured cross into the box, which was headed inches wide by Dudu.

The substitution worked wonders as Shillong Lajong snuck back into the match on the hour mark with Cornell Glen finishing off a delightful move that he himself started, bicycle kicking it into the net.

Just a minute later, the Red and Golds could have gone into the lead again as Dudu broke into the box on the counter before laying it off to Ranti whose shot from just outside the box went horribly high.

Durga Boro almost singlehandedly gave his team the lead in the 68th minute when he cut in from the left before a piledrive of a shot just sailed wide of the far post.

The Red and Golds did get the lead back on the 70th minute as Ranti completed his brace. It was a Raju Gaikawad long throw that wreaked havoc in the box, with Ranti having no problems thumping in a header on the near post, with the goalkeeper stranded in no mans land.

On the 84th minute it was RajuGaikawad who came to his side’s rescue after Uilliams had once again gone clear down the left before aiming a cross towards Cornell Glen. If not for Raju’s interception, Cornell had only the goalkeeper to beat from point blank range.

The Kolkata side managed to see off the match and made it two back to back wins at home, while the North East side were relegated to their second defeat on the road.

Hero of the Match  – Ranti Martins.