After a cagey opening 10 minutes, a moment of magic from Ashique Kuruniyan gave Bengaluru FC the lead in the 12th minute. Siroj Kuziev played a pinpoint long ball from the deep, to find Ashique on the left flank, and he cut back in before letting it fly from his weaker foot to find the far top corner.
However, the lead did not last long for BFC, as Anwar Ali equalized with an overhead kick, after a corner was not dealt with effectively by the Blues’ defense.
East Bengal FC were reduced to 10-men in the 25th minute, when Miguel Figueira was sent off by the referee. Bengaluru FC took advantage of the situation, when Gill parried a low cross from Ryan Williams straight into the path of Suresh Wangjam, who smashed it in from point-blank range to give the Blues a 2-1 lead heading into the break.
In the second half, East Bengal FC secured a precious equalizer through Saul Crespo’s left-footed strike from the edge of the box that blew past Gurpreet on the far post. After 55 minutes, the game was level 2-2.
Pep decided to bring on Soham and Fanai for Chhetri and Suresh in the 61st minute to help his team with some fresh legs for the final third of the game.
The change in attack worked for the Blues, as Soham Varshneya unlocked the EBFC defence with an accurate through ball to find Ryan’s run, and the no. 7 went around Gill before squeezing it from an acute angle to restore the lead for Bengaluru FC.
East Bengal had a fleeting chance in the 87th minute, with a long-range effort, but it was fired straight into the arms of Gurpreet for a simple save. East Bengal FC, however, did not give up until the final minute, as Sojberg scored the equalizer in the 97th minute.
Soon after, the final whistle blew, and the spoils were shared at the VYBK.
