BENGALURU: After a slow start — drawing three of their first four games — Bengaluru FC seem to have found their mojo in the Indian Super League. They have now won two in two, including the impressive 2-1 victory over Odisha FC at GMC Stadium on Thursday.
Sunil Chhetri and Cleiton Silva scored for Carles Cuadrat's side, while Steven Taylor found the net for their opponents. This win propelled Bengaluru to third place, while Odisha remained 10th. It proved to be a special occasion for Chhetri, as he became the first Indian to record 50 goal contributions (42 goals and 8 assists) in the history of ISL.
The game started on a bright note for Bengaluru. Kristian Opseth missed an early chance to take the lead, while the likes of Erik Paartalu and Dimas Delgado had attempts on goal from a distance. But none of these efforts tested Odisha goalkeeper Arshdeep Singh.
Despite Bengaluru having greater possession, Odisha were posing questions. However, Bengaluru took the lead thanks to a brilliant header from their talismanic skipper Chhetri in the 38th minute. One also needs to applaud Harmanjot Khabra, who delivered an inviting ball inside the box and the 36-year-old made no mistake in scoring his third goal of the season. They continued to dominate after that, but failed to double their lead going into the break.
With Bengaluru goalkeeper Gurpreet Singh Sandhu not tested much in the first 45, Odisha had to up their game and they did. There was some intent and they enjoyed some decent spells too. It paid dividends in the 71st minute when Taylor scored from Jerry Mawihmingthanga's free-kicks.
A few minutes later, Bengaluru brought in fresh legs in search of another goal and the move worked. Substitute Deshorn Brown set up Silva, who made no mistake from inside the box to score in the 79th minute.
With just over 10 minutes left on the clock, it was not going to be easy for Odisha to break Bengaluru's defence and come back into the game a second time. With the likes of Juanan, Khabra and Francisco Gonzalez standing tall at the back, Bengaluru ensured full points.