NorthEast United FC won 4-0 over Shillong Lajong in the North East derby to get their Durand Cup 2023 campaign off to a great start.
At the Indira Gandhi Athletic Stadium on Friday, Assamese Parthib Gogoi scored the other goal for the Highlanders, while Romain Philippoteaux recorded his first hat trick at the senior level.
From the time the referee blew his whistle, the Highlanders seemed to be the better structured team. In the 26th minute of the first half, their advantage in the match paid off.
Rochharzela cut in front of his defender and ran towards the top of the box before unleashing a pile-driver that sank in front of Shillong goalkeeper Neithovilie Chalieu due to the slick playing surface. The keeper weakly parried it away, and it fell to a lurking, youthful Parthib Gogoi, who skillfully lobbed Chalieu to start the scoring.
When Romain Philippoteaux expertly drove in to throw the Shillong defense off balance and Kenstar brought the Frenchman down inside the box, the advantage was doubled. Romain erred by completing what he had started, and the referee had no reluctance in pointing to the spot.
Five minutes after the game started, Jithin MS, a second-half substitute, set up Parthib with a beautiful cross, but the youthful striker’s shot went straight at Chalieu with the score still reading 2-0 in favor of the Highlanders.
At the hour mark, both coaches—Spaniard Juan Pedro Ben Ali and Shillong’s Bobby Lyngdoh—kept making substitutions, but Parthib’s awareness inside the box and precise finishing allowed NEUFC to come out on top.
It was Phalguni Singh who saw Gani Nigam, yet another replacement, running on the right. In the clear, Gani found Parthib after fending off his marker, who tapped in for the third.
When Jithin was perfectly set up by Philippoteaux on the left wing, the local player accomplished his hat trick. This time, Parthib made no errors with the cross, slipping in to defeat Chalieu for the third time personally and a total of four times throughout the game.
Shillong did not give up pursuing the game or attempting to get a goal back, which is commendable and has been their guiding principle, but there was nothing significant to test NEUFC goalkeeper Mirshad, and in the end it was a canter for the Highlanders.
With FC Goa and Downtown Heroes of Kashmir up next for both teams, the victory would be essential.
An extensive cultural event and opening ceremony were held before to the game, and Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma was there.
