Bagan juggernaut rolls on to third spot on NFL

Kolkata, Apr 3 (UNI) Mohun Bagan moved up to the third spot on the NFL ladder usurping Sporting Clube de Goa, whom they defeated 1-0 here tonight.

Mohun Bagan now have 17 points from 11 matches while Sporting remain on 16 from 10.

Mohun Bagan's goal came in the 67th minute of the match.

Ebrahim's lob inside the box saw Sushil Singh flamoux Sporting keeper Barretto with a touch, only to see the ball recochet off the post. The ball was cleared but only till Coffi whose low cross saw an overlapping Dharamjit score with a dazzling header 1-0.

The match began on a brisk note with both the teams playing end-to-end football.

Mohun Bagan held sway playing some attacking brand of soccer with Dharamjit Singh excellinhg on the right flank and Coffi Agbessi flowing down the left.

Mohun Bagan always had the numerical advantage in the opposition's territory pushing more men up in the attacking-third.

However, it was Sporting Clube de Goa's Dudu Omagebemi shooting wide from close.

However, the best chance of the match came Sushil Singh's way when his header off a Coffi corner was saved from the goal line by Felip Gomes.

Sushil, once again tested Sporting's goalie Loius Barretto with a powerful volley after Ebrahim set him up brilliantly with a deft backpass after slicing through the rival defence.

In the second half, the match was reduced to scrappy display with both the teams engaged in a mid field tussle. However, Mohun Bagan scored off a quick counter-attack in the 67th minute that injected added some spirit into the game.

Bolstered by the goal, Bagan opened up trying to increase the tally. In one such move, Coffi Agbessi let go a blinder that was parried away by Barretto. As the goal keeper and a Sporting defender tried to clear the ball to safety, Sushil Singh banged the ball home, only to see referee Rizwan Ul Haq disallow the goal for a foul on the Sporting keeper.

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