12 Kolkata: Raphael Messi Bouli got his first goal in East Bengal FC jersey as Oscar Bruzon's side got past a dogged Hyderabad FC 2-0 at the Salt Lake Stadium on Wednesday, scripting their maiden hat-trick of victories in the ISL history and keeping alive their faint playoff hopes this season.
East Bengal broke the deadlock through Manoj Mohammed's own goal in the 86th minute and Messi-Bouli put the icing on the cake by finding the back of the net five minutes into the stoppage time.
East Bengal's win No. 8 — which was also their maximum in a season and which followed their triumphs against Mohammedan SC and Punjab FC in the past 10 days — helped them move up to the 8th place with 27 points from 22 matches. This was also their highest points tally in a single ISL season, surpassing last season's mark (24 points). The loss, meanwhile, condemned Hyderabad to a bottom-two finish this term.
Despite knowing that their playoff hopes are not in their hands, the hosts wanted to keep the momentum going. However, while Anwar Ali & Co were sloppy sometimes, most of their attacking ambitions also faded into insignificance because of poor final passes in the opening half. In fact, it was Hyderabad who looked livelier and Edmilson Correia had an attempt denied by the post.
The second half began with Messi Bouli now hitting the post. Bruzon decided to go all out, bringing in striker Richard Celis at the expense of defender Hector Yuste and then replacing an off-colour Dimitrios Diamantakos with David Lalhlansanga.
The gamble paid off in the 86th minute. David flicked a Celis corner at the first post. Rising behind him was Manoj, who scored a 90-minute equalizer against East Bengal in the first leg. This time, the full-back's attempted clearance changed the direction of the ball slightly but significant enough for it to settle into the bottom corner of the far post.
The visitors, thus stunned, left their area in search of an equalizer again. As East Bengal negotiated an attack, Saul Crespo sensed an opportunity, releasing Messi Bouli down the middle. The Cameroonian outpaced lone defender Andrei Alba and beat goalie Arshdeep Singh to cap his man-of-the-match performance.
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