A staff reporter
Calcutta: Bengaluru FC and East Bengal have bowed out, but Mohun Bagan marched on to the Federation Cup semi-finals.
Bagan thrashed Salgaocar FC 4-0 on Thursday at the Barasat Stadium to win 7-2 on aggregate and set up a clash against Lajong FC in the last-four stage.
Katsumi Yusa opened the scoring for Bagan, with Sony Norde scoring on either side of the break - at 45th and 52nd minutes - before Jeje Lalpekhlua struck late in the added time of the second half to complete Salgaocar's agony. Bagan coach Sanjay Sen made three changes to the team which played the first-leg match on Monday. Pronay Halder, Kean Lewis and Subash Singh were ignored while Sony, Azharuddin Mallick and Bikramjit Singh were ushered in.
Sony, who missed the first-leg tie with an injury, was outstanding on Thursday. As and when he got the ball, the opposition defence felt the pressure.
Bagan started on an attacking note and could have got their first goal inside five minutes, but Salgaocar 'keeper Karanjit Singh brilliantly saved Sony's head.
Bagan had to wait till the 25th minute for the first goal. It was Sony who gave an excellent pass to Katsumi, who was standing unmarked at the edge of the six-yard box.
Katsumi made it 1-0 in favour of Bagan with a right-foot push. Thereafter, it was Bagan who dominated the proceedings. Salgaocar did get a chance to equalise, but Calvin Mbarga wasted it.
Sony scored Bagan's second just before half-time after receiving a through pass from Katsumi.
Salgaocar, however, started to push the Bagan defence in the second half. They created a few chances too, but could not convert even one. Darryl Duffy's header hit the cross bar. It was left to Sony to release the pressure on Bagan, when with an angled shot he found the right corner of the net. Salgaocar's hopes of making a comeback were practically dashed by that goal.
In the fourth minute of stoppage time, Jeje hammered the final nail on the coffin with a fine individual effort. The striker went on a solo run before beating Karanjit with ease to make it 4-0.
Bagan coach Sen was happy with his team's performance. "I am happy with the way team played. Sony was excellent. (Cornell) Glen also tried his best," he said on Thursday. Sen is well aware of the fact that it won't be easy against Lajong in the semis. "We did not concede any goal, and that is very satisfying... But against Lajong, it will be tough," Sen added.
Bagan will host Lajong in the first-leg tie on Sunday, with the return leg being scheduled on May 15. "We have a plan to score early... Today our boys executed our plans better than expected. But our job is not yet done. We need to stay focused," Sen said.
Sony was obviously happy after receiving the Man of the Match award. "The entire team played very well, and I just tried to play my part. We have continue the good work," Norde said.
TEAMS
Mohun Bagan: Debjit Majumder, Pritam Kotal, Kinshuk Debnath (Raju Gaikwad), Luciano Sobrosa, Dhanachandra Singh, Bikramjit Singh, Katsumi Yusa, Lenny Rodrigues (Souvik Chakraborty), Azharuddin Mallick, Jeje Lalpekhlua, Sony Norde (Cornell Glen).
Salgaocar: Karanjit Singh, Reagan Singh, Eder Monteiro, Leny Levis Pereira, Nicolau Colaco (Brian Mascarenhas), Thangjam Saran Singh, Martin Scott, Gabriel Fernandes (Seityasen Singh), Jackichand Singh (Augustin Fernandes), Darryl Duffy, Calvin Mbarga.
Referee: Priyobrata Singh Langpoklakpam
Sony Norde scores Mohun Bagan’s second goal on Friday. A Telegraph picture
Bagan thrashed Salgaocar FC 4-0 on Thursday at the Barasat Stadium to win 7-2 on aggregate and set up a clash against Lajong FC in the last-four stage.
Katsumi Yusa opened the scoring for Bagan, with Sony Norde scoring on either side of the break - at 45th and 52nd minutes - before Jeje Lalpekhlua struck late in the added time of the second half to complete Salgaocar's agony. Bagan coach Sanjay Sen made three changes to the team which played the first-leg match on Monday. Pronay Halder, Kean Lewis and Subash Singh were ignored while Sony, Azharuddin Mallick and Bikramjit Singh were ushered in.
Sony, who missed the first-leg tie with an injury, was outstanding on Thursday. As and when he got the ball, the opposition defence felt the pressure.
Bagan started on an attacking note and could have got their first goal inside five minutes, but Salgaocar 'keeper Karanjit Singh brilliantly saved Sony's head.
Bagan had to wait till the 25th minute for the first goal. It was Sony who gave an excellent pass to Katsumi, who was standing unmarked at the edge of the six-yard box.
Katsumi made it 1-0 in favour of Bagan with a right-foot push. Thereafter, it was Bagan who dominated the proceedings. Salgaocar did get a chance to equalise, but Calvin Mbarga wasted it.
Sony scored Bagan's second just before half-time after receiving a through pass from Katsumi.
Salgaocar, however, started to push the Bagan defence in the second half. They created a few chances too, but could not convert even one. Darryl Duffy's header hit the cross bar. It was left to Sony to release the pressure on Bagan, when with an angled shot he found the right corner of the net. Salgaocar's hopes of making a comeback were practically dashed by that goal.
In the fourth minute of stoppage time, Jeje hammered the final nail on the coffin with a fine individual effort. The striker went on a solo run before beating Karanjit with ease to make it 4-0.
Bagan coach Sen was happy with his team's performance. "I am happy with the way team played. Sony was excellent. (Cornell) Glen also tried his best," he said on Thursday. Sen is well aware of the fact that it won't be easy against Lajong in the semis. "We did not concede any goal, and that is very satisfying... But against Lajong, it will be tough," Sen added.
Bagan will host Lajong in the first-leg tie on Sunday, with the return leg being scheduled on May 15. "We have a plan to score early... Today our boys executed our plans better than expected. But our job is not yet done. We need to stay focused," Sen said.
Sony was obviously happy after receiving the Man of the Match award. "The entire team played very well, and I just tried to play my part. We have continue the good work," Norde said.
TEAMS
Mohun Bagan: Debjit Majumder, Pritam Kotal, Kinshuk Debnath (Raju Gaikwad), Luciano Sobrosa, Dhanachandra Singh, Bikramjit Singh, Katsumi Yusa, Lenny Rodrigues (Souvik Chakraborty), Azharuddin Mallick, Jeje Lalpekhlua, Sony Norde (Cornell Glen).
Salgaocar: Karanjit Singh, Reagan Singh, Eder Monteiro, Leny Levis Pereira, Nicolau Colaco (Brian Mascarenhas), Thangjam Saran Singh, Martin Scott, Gabriel Fernandes (Seityasen Singh), Jackichand Singh (Augustin Fernandes), Darryl Duffy, Calvin Mbarga.
Referee: Priyobrata Singh Langpoklakpam
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