Olympics Begin In
:
Days
:
Hours
:
Mins
 
Secs
Begin typing your search above and press return to search.

Football

Durand Cup 2022: Highlights from Week 1

Here are the most exciting moments from Week 1 of Durand Cup 2022.

Durand Cup 2022: Highlights from Week 1
X

Nikum celebrating after scoring the winner against ATK Mohun Bagan. (Source: Twitter/ Sevens NXT)

By

Triyasha Chatterjee

Published: 22 Aug 2022 12:10 PM GMT

As the first game week of the prestigious Durand Cup draws to a close, the tournament provided some thrilling moments of Indian football- from the incredible turnout in the Imphal derby to Nikum Gyammar's 95th-minute winner against ATK Mohun Bagan. Among all of the exciting feats, we at The Bridge have selected the top moments of the week:

Rajasthan United FC surprise ATK Mohun Bangan:

As Gyamar Nikum ran around in the pitch after scoring the third goal in the fifth minute of extra time, he left Spaniard Ferrando and his fellow players speechless. Juan Ferrando's side, who aim to establish a name for themselves on the continent, struggled to beat a team that refused to bow down to big aliases like Florentin Pogba, Joni Kauko, and Hugo Boumous.

ATK Mohun Bagan missed numerous chances, scored twice, and conceded three in a 3-2 loss to I-League team Rajasthan United at the Salt Lake Stadium on Saturday.

Kiyan Nassiri gave ATK Mohun Bagan the lead two minutes before halftime, only for Bektur Amangeldiev to equalise just before the whistle for lemon break. Ashique Kuruniyan put ATK Mohun Bagan ahead immediately after the restart, but Lalremsanga Fanai equalised a minute later.

Just as everyone thought the game was deadlocked, Arunachal Pradesh's Nikum notched one past goalkeeper Arsh Anwar. ATK Mohun Bagan began as expected, laying on attack after attack, but the well-organized Rajasthan defence refused to budge.

The Army teams providing hefty competition:

Army Red sprung the first surprise of the 131st Durand Cup, drawing 2-2 with two-time ISL champions Chennaiyin FC. After a barren first 45 minutes, the game turned on its head in the second half. The Reds took the lead through Lethaolen Khongsai, but it was cancelled out by Julius Duker a minute before the end of regulation. Then, in the fourth minute of added time, Edwin Vanspaul scored to put Chennaiyin ahead, only for Liton Shil to equalise again in what turned out to be a wild final seven minutes.

Army Green, the last Services team to win the Durand Cup in 2016, defeated NorthEast United FC (NEUFC) winning 3-1. Green's skipper PC Lallawmkima, one of the greatest Services footballers in recent memory, scored a brace, while Somesh Kothari scored the other. Dipu Mirdha scored a late consolation goal for NEUFC.

Muhammed Nemil shines for a rather gloom FC Goa:

In a rather young FC Goa side, Muhammed Nemil has been the stand-out player so far, scoring both of the champions' goals in the tournament so far. His wonder goal in the 34th minute of the first half gave Goa the lead against Mohammedan Sporting. Although they soon lost their lead, and ultimately the match, Nemil's strike will be a good take away.

Nemil's second goal of the tournament came against the Air Force team. Mevan Dias broke through on the right and delivered a pass inside the box, finding his centre-forward in space. Nemil turned, transferred the ball to his preferred left foot, and slid the ball into the bottom corner, past a diving Air Force keeper Shibinraj's outstretched left hand.

Mohammedan Sporting maintain winning streak:

Mohammedan SC started their Durand Cup campaign with a 3-1 win over defending champions FC Goa in the tournament opener at Kolkata's Vivekanada Yuba Bharati Krirangan Stadium (VYBK). Players like Marcus Joseph, Faslu Rahman, and Faiaz have been instrumental in the team's sparkling form.

On Sunday, the Black Panthers defeated a youthful Jamshedpur FC side 3-0. Faslu Rahman scored the Black Panthers' first goal in the first half, and Abhishek Halder and S.K. Faiaz sealed the tie after the break.

Odisha FC rout North East United:

Josep Gombau's confident Odisha FC (OFC) rode a first-half brace, including two strikes in 23 minutes by Jerry Mawihmingthanga, to run out comfortable 6-0 winners against NorthEast United FC (NEUFC), in Assam's first ever Durand Cup game at Guwahati's Indira Gandhi Athletic stadium.

The first Group D game pulled in the second half, but with Isak's late strike lightening it up, Odisha put in another three-goal surprise attack in nine minutes to complete the half-dozen.

Subam Rabha's rebuilding side was primarily harmed in the first half by the trio of Jerry, Nandhakumar Sekar, and Spanish midfielder Pedro Martin. The ending simply put an authoritative stamp on a story that had already been written. The Highlanders' damage could have been far greater if it hadn't been for Nikhil Deka's excellent performance under the bar.

Next Story