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East Bengal succumbed to a 4-1 loss against Odisha FC in the 2023-24 edition of the Indian Women's League (IWL) at the East Bengal Ground in Kolkata on Thursday, January 18.
Odisha were the clear favorites heading into the contest, having won four consecutive games. East Bengal, on the other hand, had lost three out of their four games, winning just one.
The Juggernauts made their intent clear from the get-go, scoring as early as the sixth minute. Astam Oraon swung in a beautiful corner that found Juli Kishan at the far post, with the latter finding the back of the net with ease.
Pyari Xaxa was a livewire down the left wing and her efforts paid off in the 22nd minute. She set off on a darting run before cutting inside on her right foot and unleashing a bullet that beat the East Bengal custodian.
Miseries tripled the visitors' lead just four minutes later when Win Theingi Tun calmly scored after a mistake by Melody Chanu in the East Bengal goal.
Odisha FC went into the halftime break with a comprehensive 3-0 lead. The Red and Gold army had to put in a major performance in the second half if they were to take a point from the match.
East Bengal put up a fight in the second half
East Bengal pulled one back in the 63rd minute, courtesy of an own goal by Manisa Panna. Sibani Devi found a golden opportunity inside the box but her shot was going wide. Panna failed to control her run and bundled into the net along with the ball.
Odisha went close to restoring their three-goal lead in the 88th minute after Win swung a freekick into the box. But Pyari failed to keep her shot on target.
However, the Juggernauts soon scored through Malati Munda in the fourth minute of additional time to wrap up the game after Win played a beautiful through ball to the former.
The win meant Odisha FC went atop the IWL 2023-24 standings on the back of a five-match winning streak. They will next take on the only other unbeaten team in the league - Kickstart FC - at the Bangalore Football Stadium on January 24.
East Bengal, meanwhile, stay rooted to the penultimate spot. They have another stern test coming up in the form of Gokulam Kerala on January 23.
