NorthEast United FC defeated Downtown Heroes on Sunday in Guwahati by a score of 3-1 to go to the Durand Cup 2023 quarterfinals.
The first goal was given up by the Highlanders, as Parvaj Bhuiya scored in the eighth minute. At the interval, Downtown maintained their slim 1-0 advantage.
Ibson Melo’s equalizer in the 48th minute, followed by Romain Philippoteaux’s goal in the 52nd, helped NorthEast revers the situation in the second half.
Finally, NorthEast scored the winning goal in the 78th minute to break the deadlock.
With seven points, Northeast are presently ranked second in the division, behind FC Goa on goal differential. FC Goa has advanced to the quarterfinals as well.
Following goaltender Mirshad’s gaffe in the eighth minute, Downtown seized the one opportunity and stunned NorthEast by scoring first via Bhuiya.
This time, Mirshad took extra care to prevent the debutants from increasing their advantage as Downtown pushed hard via Ezekiel and Parvaj.
After Parthib Gogoi, a local player, took over for Jithin at the start of the second half, NEUFC quickly equalized.
Ibson from Brazil When given the opportunity, Melo seized it with both hands and scored in the 48th minute. Melo scored when a high ball inside the box struck Spaniard Zabaco’s head and fell at his feet.
Due to a Downtown player’s misplaced pass just outside the penalty area, NorthEast’s onslaught continued, and they took the lead in the 52nd minute when captain Romain Philippoteaux made sure to smash the ball home.
For the next 20 minutes, NEUFC controlled play without scoring. Gogoi, though, showed class by eliminating three defenders with a lone move into the box and scoring the game-winning goal for his team in the 78th minute.
Although Downtown made several clumsy attempts to counter it, none succeeded in endangering the Highlanders.
Mohammedan is eliminated despite losing to Jamshedpur 6-0.
Mohammedan Sporting destroyed Jamshedpur FC 6-0 in Kolkata’s second game of the day with a commanding performance.
Lalremsanga After increasing it by two in the sixteenth, Fanai gave Mohammedan the lead in the tenth. Mohammedan’s resounding victory was sealed by David Lalhlansanga, who scored four goals in the 28th, 69th, 82nd, and 88th minutes.
Despite winning, Mohammedan was unable to advance to the quarterfinals.
Mohammedan ranked third in the ranking of the second-placed teams, behind Mohun Bagan SG by one goal, even though they finished second in Group B, trailing table-toppers Mumbai City FC by three points.
The victory of NEUFC also made things more difficult for Mohammedan.