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Bengaluru FC kicked off their 2022-23 Indian Super League (ISL) season with a controversial 1-0 victory over Northeast United FC at the Sree Kanteerava Stadium in Bengaluru. A thumping header from Alan Costa helped the recent Durand Cup winners overcome their opponents after toiling hard for the opener.
The first opportunity for Bengaluru FC came when Roshan beat numerous Northeast United players and made a lung-busting run from the middle of the park to pull the ball back and set up Sivasakthi. However, the young Indian striker's shot went agonizingly wide off the far post.
The Highlanders nearly capitalized from a Prabir Das mistake when Jithin made a run behind the defender and failed to toe-poke the ball into the back of the net after getting into a one-on-one situation with Gurpreet.
The final 20 minutes produced many chances for both sides. Pragyan Gogoi's shot was supposed to creep into the bottom right corner following a tiny deflection until Gurpreet got a strong hand to parry the ball away to safety.
At the other end, Chhetri and Jhingan missed easy chances, while Udanta skied the ball from outside the penalty box. The hosts' thrust finally paid off when Alan Costa leapt high to score the first goal of the night via a thumping header.
Northeast United were not done though. Two minutes after rattling the crossbar, the visitors thought they had equalized through their midfielder, Jon Gaztanaga.
However, the linesman ruled out a goal for offside in what proved to be a contentious decision that raised tension in the Northeast United camp. Manager Marco Balbul was given the marching order after losing his temper against the referee and the linesman.
To complete the review of the contest, let's look at three points from Bengaluru FC's first victory of this campaign.
#1 Right hand side of Bengaluru FC looked defensively susceptible
Northeast United winger Jithin experienced joy through the left wing and completed numerous take-ons to trouble Simon Grayson's side. Prabir Das was mostly on the receiving end as the former ATK Mohun Bagan right-back struggled to contain his opponent, especially when Suresh operated through the right side of the midfield.
Spotting the issue, Grayson swapped his midfielders and deployed Ramires through the right hand side. Additionally, Sandesh Jhingan and Alan Costa shifted positions, with the former moving to the center of the back three and the latter being deployed as a right-sided centre-back.
This tactical change helped Prabir see out the second half with zero defensive hiccups. The Bengaluru FC boss will be hoping to address that issue before the next game.
#2 Positive start for Northeast United despite conceding late
Northeast United can be proud of their display despite being hard done by a controversial decision in stoppage time. Nobody gave them a chance to go toe-to-toe with Bengaluru FC before the game.
The Highlanders looked threatening for parts of the game and had two glorious chances with Jithin and Romain failing to hit the target.
From the goalkeeper to the forward line - the visitors functioned as a unit to cause trouble for the hosts. Head coach Marco Balbul will pick positives from this match and will look forward to the next fixture against Hyderabad on Thursday.
#1 Alan Costa & Roshan Singh - Standouts for Bengaluru FC
Roshan Singh made runs up and down the field and helped his side create many chances throughout the left wing. The wing-back was unlucky not to be on the assist sheet after Sivasakthi failed to divert the ball into an open net in the first half. He made a similar run late in the game, but failed to pay dividends.
Brazilian Alan Costa not only scored the match winner, but installed calmness in the backline. Costa brought his experience into play when he won headers and duels at the back in the second part of the game after Bengaluru FC were leaking opportunities for Northeast United in the first half.
Simon Grayson will be dependent on his performances throughout the season.
