Regimental side, Indian Navy gave a decent account of itself by beating Delhi FC 2-1 in the opening game of Group C, playing their first game of the 130th Durand Cup at Mohun Bagan Ground in Kolkata on Wednesday.
Central defender Dalraj Singh scored the winner in the second half with a huge header from a flag-kick. Earlier, Trinidadian Willis Plaza had put Delhi ahead in the 21st minute of the first half, only to equalized through Shreyas four minutes later by the sailors. The game was fought on a similar reversal with the Navy ending up as the stronger side. Four foreigners from the Delhi side, Brazilian Sergio Barbosa Jr., Nigerian Ekom Phillips and Gambian Dawda Sese were giving plaza company on the field, but in the end they were to no avail against a spirited naval performance.
Trinidad and Tobago’s prolific goalscorer in the top divisions of Indian football Willis Dion Plaza scored his first Durand Cup goal and put Delhi’s team 21 minutes into the game. After a very captivating attack from Renrethan Shaiza and Davda Sesay, he found it inside the box at the end of a floating ball to smash it past navy keeper Bhaskar Roy.
The sailors, however, retaliated almost immediately when a cross from the right from Nihal Sudish saw Shreyas, who had a fine game overall, swoop between Delhi defenders inside the six-yard box to clinically lift the net finish. hit. The goal boosted the Navy. Side no end and coach Abhilash Nair also influenced early changes bringing Sarabjit Singh into midfield for Jijo.
Willis Plaza, however, had a golden opportunity to push his team back just before half-time, but his shot after a lovely shot from Brazilian Barbosa was thwarted by keeper Roy. Dalraj did not reach the previously competitive level for most of the second half before ensuring a grand stand finish. Rising above the crowd from a navy corner in the 86th minute, he blasted a header into Delhi’s goal in front of the helpless Manveer Singh.
Speaking after the game, Dalraj credited his coach Abhilash Nair’s pre-game planning for the result. He said, “The coaches used to make us practice these set-pieces all the time and also tell us how to play in the short-pass, because he had deep-four. I think following their plans helped and we got results.
Yan Law, Delhi FC’s head coach, was quite disappointed saying, “We have had tough games against ISL teams Bengaluru FC and Kerala Blasters and we definitely need to improve in all departments if we have to go our way. To get results.”
Abhilash Nair on the other hand gave credit to his team saying, “I am very happy because our boys played according to plan and followed all the instructions which is why we got the result despite injuring two players at the last minute We will try to win all the matches.”
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