Santosh Trophy 2018, Semi-final: Karnataka vs West Bengal, Live Match Updates

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The defending champions continued their sublime form in today's match and returned home with a comfortable 2-0 victory against Karnataka. Bengal skipper Jiten Murmu provided the initial break with Tirthankar Sarkar putting the final nail in the coffin in the dying minutes.

With the win, the 32-times champion has qualified for the summit clash once again and will take on the winner of Kerala and Mizoram on Sunday.

And, it's all over here. The referee blows the whistle to signal the end of the match.

90+4' Karnataka seems to have lost the plot as Sujay Dutta comes close to scoring a third for Bengal

90+2' Goooaaalll!!!

It's all over for Karnataka as Bengal puts the final nail in the coffin with a second goal. Tirthankar Sarkar converts a free kick with a wonderful knuckleball from right outside the box to double the lead for Bengal.

90' 5 minutes have been added on. Can Karnataka pull one back and bring the game back to level terms in the penultimate stage?

88' Defending champions Bengal not losing the intensity as they try hard for a second goal to cushion their lead in the dying minutes of the match

85' Bengal looking very compact defensively as they deny Karnataka any space in the field with which they can work with.

83' Bengal are currently sitting deep in their own half as they try and sustain the Karnataka onslaught for the remaining few miniutes.

80' Bengal goalkeeper Ranajit Majumder goes down with what looks to be a hamstring but he finally gets back on his feet.

79' Karnataka looking to take the aerial route in order to find the equalizer but Bengal are exposing very little in their defence.

75' Game resumes after the cooling break and Karnataka on the attack. The attack is halted and free-kick for Bengal.

73' Ref blows the whistle as the players head for a cooling break in the hot and sultry weather here in Kolkata

69' Karnataka with a promising surge down the right flank but no end result on the attack

65' Substitution
First change of the game for Karnataka as Edwin Rossario goes off to make way for Shamanth Dodda.

62' Bengal playing with real intent now. Karnataka now down the left flank but the pass is too heavy for the full back to chase down.

57' Gooooooaaall!!

Bengal skipper Jiten Murmu steps up to break the deadlock and put his team in the front.

55' Chancee!!

First potential chance of the half as Karnataka looked on the money to break the stalemate. The visitors with a clear goal scoring chance but the Bengal defender makes an amazing last moment tackle to save the day.

51' Tirthankar Sarkar doing an impeccable job in the midfield for Bengal falling in deep to facilitate play. He is making all the difference with some amazing passing.

49' Bengal dominating posession in the first four minutes of the second half. Tirthankar Sarkar with a shot at the goal but the same is off target.

46' We are back with the second-half live action from the semi-final match between Karnataka and West Bengal.

Half Time

45' Four minutes of added time at the end of the first half.

41' Last few minutes of the first half as Bengal looks under pressure and is struggling to keep possession.

40' Chance!!!

Karnataka with a golden chance to take the lead and establish their dominion over the defending champions. But Bengal goalkeeper Ranajit Mazumder's heroics save the day as he makes two continuous saves in a one-on-one situation.

37' Bengal showing better intent after the break but failing to make any inroads. Both teams still tied at 0-0

31' And we are back from the break as Bengal resumes with a throw in

30' Water break

The players head for a short breather as the ref blows the whistle for a water break in the hot sunny afternoon in Kolkata

30' Karnataka looking restless after managing only sporadic chances inside the first half hour. The visitors are trying to penetrate the Bengal defence but the hosts have exposed very little thus far.

26' What an attempt!!
Tirthankar Sarkar almost scores with his left foot swirler as the ball brushes past the woodwork. Karnataka defenders breathe easy

25' Trithankar Sarkar with a wonderful forward ball to Bidyshagar Singh and his cross results in hand-ball awarding Bengal a free kick right at the edge of the box. Can the defending champions convert it?

21' Bengal with a forward ball and Jiten Murmu wins a corner for the team. However a foul by Tirthankar Sarkar on Leon Augustine while heading the ball brings a premature end to the attack.

19' Bengal with a move from the left flank but the cross from Sumit Das goes straight to the Karnataka goalkeeper as the defenders breathe easy.

15' No major trouble as Biswas returns to the pitch.

15' Injury scare for Bengal as Krishna Biswas goes down with an impact. Has to be taken to the sidelines.

11' Leon Augustine with a beautiful run down the right flank but a strong tackle from the Bengal defence stalls his move.

8' Chance!
Bengal with a free-kick from a lucrative spot.Tirthankar Sarkar whips in a cross into the box but the delivery is cleared by Karnataka. Danger averted.

6' The hosts on the lookout for an early goal with a promising surge. However, the through ball is successfully intercepted by the Karnataka defence.

3' Karnataka trying to patiently build up an attack from the back but the long ball into the final third is intercepted.

1' And we are underway as Karnataka kicks it off from the middle.

Karnataka will be attacking from left to right of the field and Bengal from right to left.

Starting XI#SantoshTrophy #KARvBEN pic.twitter.com/Jd75j7sN4U
— Indian Football Team (@IndianFootball) March 30, 2018

At the Sailen Manna Stadium in Howrah, it’s getting heating up as Bengal will take on Karnataka in the 72nd Santosh Trophy semifinals on Friday, March 30 at 2:30 PM. After losing their final group game against Kerala, Bengal is ready to face Karnataka and take their place in the finals to face Kerala or Mizoram. As the defending champions, they need to pick up the victory for not losing the tag as ‘the champions’.

It will be a tough game for Karnataka, to face the champions in the semifinals. They fully deserve to take on Bengal as they worked very hard for this.As for Karnataka, the faced lots of difficulties to be in semifinals. They qualified to the semifinals due to their hard work and determination. This match will be full of thrill which shows Karnataka’s willingness and Bengal’s hunger for remaining champions. In this match, anything can happen as the hunger for winning the title will start today.