NorthEast United FC Stun Mohun Bagan On Penalties In Durand Cup Final, Win First-Ever Club Trophy

After trailing 2-0 at half-time, NorthEast United completed a miraculous comeback.

NorthEast United FC completed a brilliant comeback victory after being two goals down to overcome defending champions Mohun Bagan Super Giant on penalties and clinch the 133rd Durand Cup in a thrilling final which was played here at the Vivekananda Yuba Bharati Krirangan. This is the Highlanders maiden Durand Cup title and their first ever silverware in Indian football. The defending champions had taken a 2-0 lead in the first half through Jason Cummings and Sahal Abdul Samad. Alaaeddine Ajaraie and Guillermo Fernandez equalised in the second half and NorthEast goalkeeper Gurmeet Singh turned the hero, denying two spot kicks to ensure that his side complete a thrilling victory.

Juan Pedro Benali made a tactical decision leaving both Spanish attacking players Guillermo Fernandez and Nestor Albiach on the bench and starting Alaaeddine Ajaraie, Jithin M.S and Thoi Singh in attack with the Moroccan midfield duo of Mohammed Ali Bemammer and Hamza Regragui along with Mayakkannan Muthu shielding the defence led by Michel Zabaco. On the other end, Jose Molina started Jason Cummings and Greg Stewart along with Sahal Abdul Samad in attack with Liston Colaco and Manvir Singh providing the width in the pitch. Subhasish Bose returned to the starting eleven and slotted in a back three in defence along with Thomas Aldred and Alberto Rodriguez.

The nerves of a final were seen in the initial minutes as both teams looked cagey from the first whistle but it was the Kolkata side which settled into the game quicker. Sahal Abdul Samad was pulled down by Asheer Akhtar inside the box and the referee had an easy decision to point to the spot. Jason Cummings calmly slotted the resultant penalty in the goal past Gurmeet Singh by Jason Cummings to give the Mariners the crucial lead in the finals. .

The first half definitely belonged to the home side and they cemented it by doubling their advantage, deep into injury time. Liston Colaco found space in the left wing and surged inside the box past Dinesh Singh. The winger poked the ball into the path of Sahal who was free inside the box and the midfielder expertly scored past the diving Gurmeet Singh as the Mariners went into the break with a 2-0 lead.

NorthEast United levelled the scores in the blink of an eye with Ajaraie and Guillermo scoring in the space of three minutes to stun the Kolkata crowd. Jithin M.S setup Ajaraie on the edge of the box and the Moroccan slotted the ball into the right corner of the goal for the first goal. Minutes later, Ajaraie found Guillermo on the far post and the Spanish forward connected first time to leave Vishal Kaith rooted on the spot as the ball flew past him and stung the net for his fifth goal of the tournament and to level the score for the Highlanders.