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Bengaluru FC have stormed their way into the finals of the Indian Super League (ISL) with a masterful 3-1 win over FC Pune City at the Sree Kanteeveera stadium in Bengaluru and have beaten the Stallions over two legs. Sunil Chhetri, the captain of the Blues rose to the occasion and scored a wonderful treble.
Jonatan Lucca, the substitute for the Stallions scored the only goal for FC Pune City as an impressive campaign for the Stallions was brought to a halt by a professional display from Bengaluru FC.
On that note, let's discuss the second leg of the semifinal in greater detail and look at the key talking points that emerged from the match:
#5 FC Pune City rue the missed chances in the first half
From the get-go, it was the visitors who took the initiative and started the game on the front foot. They were looking to attack, they were pressing with intent in midfield and was looking like the team with more urgency. Pune had 53% possession in the first half and attempted five shots in the first 45 minutes.
Diego Carlos took a fine hit from inside the box which was expertly saved by Sandhu, showing fast reflexes. Marko Stankovic's long-range shot was also parried away by the Indian international whereas Marcelino's effort was held safely by the keeper.
Another counter-attacking move saw the Brazilian forward hit one across the face of the goal but sadly for Pune, no one got at the end of that delicious cross. Pune had some brilliant chances to score that ever so crucial away goal but couldn't manage one through a lack of better composure in the final third.
#4 Udanta Singh impresses on his return
Albert Roca made two changes to his lineup from the first leg, bringing back Erik Paartalu and Udanta Singh into the playing eleven. The latter, stationed on the right wing, was Bengaluru FC's most influential player in the first half. He made the most of the width on his flank and got the better of Pune's Sahil Panwar on numerous occasions.
Udanta got around Panwar, beat him with pace and skill and was a nightmare for the left-back. It later resulted in Panwar making a rash challenge on the winger which got him booked. The left-back was substituted at the break which was Udanta's biggest victory on the night.
It was Udanta who got the assist for the first goal, playing a neat one-two with Sunil Chhetri and then delivering a perfect cross from the right flank. He could have had a goal of his own but his shot from long range in the second half went just inches wide.
#3 A nervy end to the game
In the second half, Ranko Popovic made two substitutions by taking out Diego Carlos and Emiliano Alfaro for Jonaton Lucca and Marcos Tebar, it looked like an odd decision taken by the Pune boss to take out two of his creative outlets with his team needing two goals. But it soon proved to be a mistake as Lucca scored from a freekick and made it 2-1 on the night.
Suddenly, the game was again lit up with Pune now needing just a goal in 10 minutes to win this one. They created a number of half chances in the second half but a goal from open play still eluded them. Bengaluru FC held their nerve and managed the situation expertly throughout the second interval.
The hosts hit Pune on the break with effectivity and got the all-important third goal to enter the final of the Indian Super League. The final quarter of the game had the supporters on the edge of their seats in what was a truly brilliant endorsement of the beautiful game.
#2 Cometh the hour, cometh the champion
Sunil Chhetri was largely subdued in the first leg due to the astute man marking of Adil Khan. The Blues needed a big performance from their most trusted player and as he has done on innumerable times in his career, Chhetri delivered when it mattered the most.
Three goals in a do or die encounter, woof! It surely doesn't get bigger than that for the Bengaluru captain who has time and again delivered for his side in any given competition. As the commentator said it at the end, it was Sunil Chhetri 3-1 FC Pune City in the second leg of the semifinals.
His first was a rather lucky goal, heading one into the back of the net with Vishal Kaith and Gurtej Singh clashing into one another. His second was the best of the lot, scoring a panenka and absolutely embarrassing the goalkeeper. Chhetri's hattrick goal came in a one v one situation as the captain showed his composure to net a commendable treble.
With this hattrick and with this match-winning performance, the legend of the one and only Sunil Chhetri just keeps on growing.
#1 And we have our first finalists!
After months of gruelling league phase and two hard-fought semifinal legs, Bengaluru FC have become the first finalists of season 4. It is a commendable task completed by the giants from the south to enter into the top two in their debut season of the competition.
The dream goes on for the Bengaluru faithful to win the I-League and now the ISL on their first attempt! Being the strongest team on paper, Bengaluru FC needed to walk the talk and they managed that brilliantly by winning the league phase and qualifying for the playoffs with 40 points in 18 league matches.
In the semifinals, Bengaluru FC were the better team over 180 minutes and deserved to proceed further at the expense of Pune. The second leg saw Bengaluru at their finest best, delivering a professional performance to rip apart the Stallions on the counter and then defending narrowly as a unit to deny Pune the space to work in the final third.
It was a brilliant performance which was epitomized by their captain who scored a stunning hat-trick in such a high voltage fixture.
