East Bengal’s poor run in the Indian Super League season 11 continued as the Kolkata-based club suffered a 1-2 defeat against Odisha FC in Kalinga Stadium, Bhubaneswar on Tuesday.
Roy Krishna and Mourtada Fall scored for Odisha FC while Dimitrios Diamantakos scored for East Bengal FC.
This is the sixth straight loss for East Bengal FC while Odisha is unbeaten in the last three games winning two and drawing one.
Here are the major talking points from the clash between both teams:
#1 Sergio Lobera has stabilized Odisha FC
After starting the season with two losses, Odisha FC is back on track with two wins and one draw in the last three games. Odisha defeated Jamshedpur FC 2-1 and played an entertaining 2-2 draw against Kerala Blasters before the break started.
With the likes of Roy Krishna, Diego Mauricio, and Mourtada Fall performing well and Indian players like Isak Ralte contributing, Odisha looks set to continue their good form.
#2 East Bengal’s lack of finishing hurt
East Bengal started the game dominantly and had the ball in the back of the net in the first five minutes but it was ruled out by the referee. Despite having more expected goals and shots, East Bengal lost the game.
They had 18 shots as compared to Odisha’s 11 and had six of them on target.
Their lack of finishing hurt as the only goal came via the penalty earned by Madih Talal which Dimitrios Diamantakos converted in the first half. Oscar Bruzon has to work on the strikers, especially Nandha Kumar, due to a lack of form.
#3 Penalty conceded by Odisha FC
After fluffing multiple chances, East Bengal got a reprieve in the 45+4th minute when Thoiba handled a shot from Madih Talal inside the box. Dimitrios Diamantakos duly converted the chance but it didn’t do any good.
East Bengal failed to capitalize on the chance but Mourtada Fall scored from a header in the second half to bury the game.
#4 Veteran duo shine for Odisha FC
The 36-year-old duo of Ahmed Jahouh and Mourtada Fall had a brilliant game as the latter scored the winning goal.
Fall was brilliant in defense and completed most passes in the match with 91% accuracy. He also scored from a header in the second half.
Jahouh was solid in his role making six recoveries and winning 78% of his duels further solidifying the defence of Odisha FC.
#5 East Bengal and the losing streak
With a new coach at the helm, East Bengal will take some time to regroup but six losses in six games sounds horrific for a start to the league. EBFC has just scored four goals in six games and conceded 12 goals.
The new foreign signings of Diamantakos and Talal have failed to conjure up any magic and it eventually led to Carles Cuadrat leaving the club.
The very first task for Oscar Bruzon will be to instill the winning mentality in the players.
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