#3 East Bengal 4-1 Mohun Bagan (Semi-Final, Federation Cup, 1997)
Rivalries and their build-ups can sometimes go beyond the players on the field, and this match was all about that. If you’re eagerly waiting for Pep Guardiola and Jose Mourinho meet at the Manchester derby on 10th September, you’ll know exactly how the fans were feeling then.
Larger-than-life managers, who had turned into impeccable football tacticians, were fighting it out in this match. P.K. Banerjee and Amal Dutta, the most successful Indian gaffers in the history of the game, were to clash in this match, which would see a brilliant tactical battle.
Like every other manager, these two had their distinctive working styles. While P. K. always worked with stars and established footballers, Amal Dutta was known to make giant-killing teams with young and unproven talents. Dutta had already been successful with his 4-2-4, and Cheema Okorie had wreaked havoc in Bagan’s last victory against Churchill Brothers, a dominating 6-0. Thus, the stage was set for a thrilling semi-final. There was something special brewing in the fans too, which they showed by numbers.
131,000! And this number stills stands as an Asian record for the maximum number of spectators in a one-off sporting event! Amal Dutta was famous for getting under the skin of the opposition and called Bhaichung as ‘Chung Chung’ and Samuel Omollo as ‘Omelet’. PK, who worked with established stars, rubbed this on the ego of his players, and made sure they went for the kill.
Cometh the moment, cometh the man! Arguably the best footballer India has ever produced, Bhaichung Bhutia proved just that. Nazimul Haque scored the first goal for East Bengal with a brilliant volley in the first half. After the restart, Bhaichung was just unstoppable. Amal Dutta’s tactics of all-out attack backfired and Baichung fooled defenders with an inspired display in front of the goal, scoring a brilliant hat-trick. Cheema scored a consolation for Mohun Bagan, but Bhaichung had already written himself in the history books, becoming the first ever player to score a hat-trick in this highly-followed derby.
The tactics faltered as the high-line defence of Mohun Bagan was caught napping on the through-balls for Bhaichung, who scored two goals in the last 20 minutes, killing off the game. Curiously, after this brilliant victory, East Bengal did not lift the Fed Cup that season, Salgaocar defeating them 2-1 in the final.
