Bengaluru FC moved to second in the Hero Indian Super League (Hero ISL) 2019-20 standings after a 2-0 victory against Jamshedpur FC at the Sree Kanteerava Stadium on Thursday. Erik Paartalu opened the scoring with a towering header in the first half and Sunil Chhetri put the game to bed with Bengaluru’s second of the night after halftime.

  • Erik Paartalu gave Bengaluru FC the lead from a corner in the 8th minute.
  • Sunil Chhetri doubled Bengaluru’s advantage in the 63rd minute.

Bengaluru started the game sharply and frequently made early inroads into the opposition box without managing to find the killer blow initially. They took the lead in only the 8th minute after Paartalu rose highest to nod Dimas Delgado’s corner into the back of the net. 

The Blues maintained their intensity after taking the lead and would have gone 2-0 ahead just two minutes later had it not been for Jamshedpur’s goalkeeper Subrata Paul, who did well to keep out a thumping effort from distance by Ashique Kuruniyan.

The visitors gradually grew into the match and began to see more of the ball as the half progressed. However, despite enjoying the lion’s share of the ball, Jamshedpur found it difficult to create any goal-scoring opportunities.

One of Jamshedpur’s few chances came in the 38th minute when Farukh Chouhary was put through on goal courtesy an exquisite pass by new signing David Grande. Farukh’s shot, though, was blocked and went behind for a corner.

 The visitors continued to dominate possession for the remainder of the half but couldn’t do much with it as Bengaluru went in for the halftime interval with a 1-0 lead.

The first opportunity of the second period went Bengaluru’s way when Ashique made a delightful run forward and beat a few players before exchanging a neat one-two with Manuel Onwu only to get into the box and drag his shot wide. Udanta Singh replaced Onwu soon after and tried his luck with an attempt from inside the box that went over the target.

Jamshedpur’s first chance in the half came just before the hour mark when Aitor Monroy’s stinging drive from range forced Bengaluru’s goalkeeper Gurpreet Singh Sandhu into making a save. That save proved to be crucial a few minutes later as Chhetri all but secured the three points with Bengaluru’s second goal of the night.

The Bengaluru skipper timed his run perfectly to get on the end of a searching pass by Paartalu before Subrata. After controlling the ball, Chhetri demonstrated his class and composure by rounding the goalkeeper and slotting into an empty net to make it 2-0 for the hosts.

Chhetri then set up Udanta with a wonderful cutback from the left in the 71st minute. Udanta once again managed to get his shot away but failed to keep his effort on target. The 23-year-old winger, in fact, was a busy man after coming off the bench and looked to turn provider with a cutback of his own for Ashique soon after. However, Ashique also failed to force Subrata into making a save.

Jamshedpur did have a chance to pull one back before the end of the game in the 79th minute after a missed header by Juanan put Grande in a one-on-one situation with Gurpreet. The Spanish forward got his shot on target but a strong right hand by Gurpreet denied him a goal on his debut and ensured that Bengaluru kept a clean sheet.

Hero of the Match – Ashique Kuruniyan

The pacey winger produced an electrifying performance with a lot of energy. He was a constant menace for Jamshedpur’s defence and created one chance during his 78 minutes on the pitch. Ashique also had a powerful shot from range kept out by the Jamshedpur custodian.  

AWARDS

Club Award – Bengaluru FC

Maruti Suzuki Limitless Player of the Match – Erik Paartalu

DHL Winning Pass of the Match – Erik Paartalu

ISL Emerging Player of the Match – Ashique Kuruniyan

Hero of the Match – Ashique Kuruniyan

Watch the match highlights here:

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Jamshedpur FCBengaluru FC 2019-2020Match ReportMatch 55, Bengaluru FC vs Jamshedpur FC - 2019