That's all from the live coverage of tonight's I-League action as East Bengal run away with the three points against Shillong Lajong who are unable to climb to the top of the standings. Stay tuned to Sportskeeda for all sporting updates from around the world. This is Gaurav Kadam, signing off. See you soon.
A dominating performance from the home side brings in a massive 5-1 win for Khalid Jamil's side who were on the front foot from the start. Shillong committed a couple of mistakes in the defense and gave away too many chances for the Red and Golds. Laldanmawia Ralte grabbed a brace along with goals from Yusa, Ferreira and Al-Amna completing the rout of the Reds.
89' - Another mistake by Lajong defence lets Katsumi Yusa free on the left, who cuts the ball back and tries to find Al-Amna but Doe clears the ball away from the danger.
87' - GOAL!! Shillong get a consolation goal as their skipper Samuela scores a beautiful free-kick beating the diving Mirshad on the left side. Well-taken by the young Shillong captain!
84' - Substitution for East Bengal FC: The brace scorer Laldanmawia Ralte comes off to loud cheers as Surabuddin Mollick comes on for the final 10 minutes.
78' - GOAL!! Yusa takes the spot-kick and scores past Lachenpa who almost saved it but his touch is not enough to keep the ball out. Khalid Jamil goes down in prayers at the touchline as KEB take a 5-goal lead.
77' - PENALTY!!! Laldanmawia Ralte comes rushing into the box and Tlang brings him down with a push from the back. The ref quickly awards the spot-kick. Will Ralte get his hat-trick or Yusa will take it?
73' - Plaza shows his determination and chases down a ball on the right and eventually wins a foul after being brought down by Doe. Free-kick for East Bengal as Yusa delivers a short free-kick to Amna but the Syrian's effort is cleared by the Lajong defense.
64' - ANOTHER ONE!! Ralte makes the most of a mistake by the Shillong defence as Doe and Juho fumble in front of the box and Ralte pounced quickly to come in and finish it past the rushing Lachenpa for his second and KEB's fourth of the night. Utter domination from the Red & Golds now.
58' - Cavin Lobo is down on the ground as the KEB players crowd the referee accusing Shillong players of intentionally hurting the midfielder. Even Khalid Jamil is seen complaining to the fourth official.
56' - Laurence Doe manages to slide and clear the ball as Shillong were almost caught again as Yusa tried to play Al-Amna and Plaza through on goal. Great defending by the Liberian defender.
54' - East Bengal have begun the second half in pretty much the same fashion as the first with control in the midfield and the hunger to find chances for goals. Khalid Jamil has managed to inspire the Red & Golds well after two poor games in the league so far.
51' - AND IT's THREE!! East Bengal grab their third as Al-Amna finds Ralte who had made a great run from the right. The youngster calmly rounds the keeper and slots it into the open as two diving Shillong defenders are unable to keep the ball out.
47' - Early chance for KEB!! Plaza is unable to control the ball in the box and the ball falls to Brandon V but his effort is dealt with by Shillong custodian Lachenpa. Will the second half also be along the same lines as the first...?
Half Time: Kingfisher East Bengal FC 2 - 0 Shillong Lajong FC
The first half comes to an end as it has been all East Bengal so far in the game. The home side have been heavily dominant in their attacking play as Shillong Lajong struggled to contain Katsumi Yusa and Al-Amna in the midfield. Stay tuned as we bring the second half action live in 15 minutes.
44' - Sarkar recovers well in the KEB box after initially missing the header as Samuela was lurking in the box. The right back clears the ball to safety as we reach the 45th minute mark.
43' - Arnab Mondal clears the ball away to safety after Nongbri's cross into the box was missed by Ferreira but the skipper is alert and up to the task. Corner for the Reds from Northeast India.
38' - Katsumi Yusa puts in a good cross from the left and Plaza rises to head it but misses the target as he continues his search for the elusive goal.
33' - A cross from Yusa from the left is headed back towards the box by Ralte and it falls nicely for Prakash Sarkar who runs in and absolutely batters the effort but the shot goes a bit wide to the right of the Shillong goal. Good move by the home side.
26' - PENALTY SHOUT!! Yusa comes in from the left and is brought down by a Shillong defender and the KEB playmaker goes down and appeals for a spot-kick but the referee denies much to the surprise of the Japanese midfielder.
22' - MIRSHAD ALMOST MESSED THAT UP!! Samuela takes a long-range free-kick and Mirshad came out but misjudged the flight and somehow managed to palm it away to safety. The ball is again put in by the Lajong side and Mirshad saves to palm the ball over for a corner.
18' - AND IT's TWO!! Eduardo Ferreira heads in Yusa's corner from the left side and the Shillong Lajong keeper has no chance of saving the powerful effort. The crowd goes wild as KEB have started on a strong note asserting their control within twenty minutes.
16' - Shillong Lajong's corner put in by Samuela comes in a dangerous spot and Juho almost heads it in but it loops over and Mirshad comes out to catch it and keeps his goal safe.
13' - GOAL!! The Red & Golds have taken the lead here at the Barasat...Al-Amna receives a long ball on the right and manages to outfox two defenders and unleashes his low effort and it goes past the Lajong keeper into the bottom right corner. EAST BENGAL 1 SHILLONG LAJONG 0
10' - OH SO CLOSE!! Al-Amna breaks through from the right dodging past a couple of Lajong defenders and squares it in for Plaza who wastes a good chance as he takes too much time to unleash the shot and Odafin reaches it before the effort. The Kolkata crowd express their disappointment in the striker.
8' - First corner won by Al-Amna for East Bengal. Yusa puts it in but somehow Shillong manage to clear the danger away for another corner kick as Cavin Lobo runs to take it.
5' - The initial exchanges have been scrappy as the two sides try to get momentum going into the match. Both the defences are standing tall and not allowing any attacks to develop.
1' - An early free-kick for Shillong as Arnab Mondal gives it away. Samuela takes a speculative shot and did well but Mirshad saw it through over the goal. Goal-kick for the home side.
And we're just 5 minutes away from the kickoff in Kolkata as the referee readies the skippers for pre-match formalities. Arnab Mondal wins the toss and chooses the side. Shillong Lajong will kick off the match.
In the I-League table, East Bengal are currently in the bottom half and lie on the 7th position with just 1 point from their 2 games. Meanwhile, Shillong Lajong are in the second position with two wins out of two games and will go atop the table if they win today evening.
Khalid Jamil, the East Bengal coach will be gunning for a win against Lajong today evening as he faced a lot of backlash from the Red & Golds fans with chants of 'Go Back' at their first training session after the loss in Kolkata Derby.
After a bit of controversy around East Bengal striker Willis Plaza, coach Khalid Jamil looks to have placed his trust in the Trinidadian as he starts again. Read more about it here.
