Zohmingliana Ralte’s late strike triggered wild celebrations as Aizawl FC took a giant step towards realising its dream of winning maiden I-League title. It defeated former champion Mohun Bagan 1-0 in a 17th round encounter here at the Rajiv Gandhi Stadium.
The host weathered a flurry of Mohun Bagan attacks in the opening session before turning the tables on the traditional giant of Indian football with a fabulous performance in the second.
Aizawl FC needs a draw against neighbouring rival Shillong Lajong FC in the concluding round to walk away with the crown.
Mahmoud Al Amna, the Syrian midfielder who played a key role in the home team’s success, compared his team’s spectacular rise to Leicester City’s title triumph in 2015-16. Resurrected from relegation last year, Aizawl FC is surely scripting a similar story in Indian club football.
Mohun Bagan, the 2015 I-League champion, was left ruing the missed opportunities in the first half as it had the chance of going up by at least two goals.
With this win, Aizawl FC is sitting pretty at the top with 36 points from 17 matches, leaving its challenger Bagan three points behind.
Things could have been completely different had Darryl Duffy, Bagan’s Scottish striker, scored in the fourth minute when he had only Aizawl FC goalkeeper Albino Gomes at his mercy.
Duffy, who was set up by a fine through-pass by Sony Norde, could only fire straight at onrushing Gomes instead of placing it into an open goal. The early miss seemed to have weighed heavily on the visitor, which just could not find the goal route despite getting two more chances later in the opening half.
Duffy and his strike partner Jeje Lalpekhlua fluffed the chances in the 10th and 15th minutes of the match. Incessant drizzle and dense clouds forced referee Rahul Kumar Gupta to stop the match briefly on three occasions.
Mohun Bagan, which changed its tactic in the second, retreated into a defensive shell while Aizawl FC went for the kill and got rewarded in the 83rd minute. Zohmingliana Ralte jumped above the Mohun Bagan defence to nod home Jayesh Rane’s corner.
MohunBagan could have snatched an equaliser in added time, but substitute Prabir Das headed wide when Norde reached him unmarked inside the Aizawl box with a fine cross.
