Mohun Bagan Super Giant started their Durand Cup campaign with a 1-0 win over rivals East Bengal in the opening match of the tournament at the Salt Lake Stadium on Saturday.Salary: Abdul Samad scored the only goal of the game in the 52nd minute, while goalkeeper Vishal Kaith made a series of key saves to help. Mohun Bagan keep a clean sheet.The decisive moment came after Mohun Bagan pressed high on the pitch. Youngster Kiyan Nassiri won possession near the East Bengal penalty area before driving to the byline and sending the ball into the goal. Manvir Singh tried a backheel but failed to make contact, allowing the ball to roll to Sahal, who slotted it into an open net.The win marked a winning start for new Mohun Bagan head coach Panagiotis Dilberis.
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His side remained organized throughout the match, with Kaith leading the defense and Rahul Bheke helping to silence East Bengal’s attackers.For East Bengal, it has been a losing start under new coach Antonio Habas despite a good performance after the break.The first half was evenly contested, with Mohun Bagan seeing more of the ball while East Bengal looked to create attacking chances. Neither team created a clear scoring opportunity before halftime as both defenses remained compact.East Bengal turned up the pressure in the final 15 minutes and spent much of Mohun Bagan’s half in search of an equaliser.Jeakson Singh tried to find PV Vishnu with a long pass from deep, but the ball ran out of play. Shortly after, Mohammed Rashid put a loose ball on the edge of the box with a first-time volley, but Deepak Tangri made a timely sliding block to deny the effort.East Bengal’s best chance came in the 87th minute when Vishnu delivered a cross from the left. Dani Ramirez hit the near post, but the ball hit the outside of the post and bounced back.Kaith then made the game’s defining save in the second minute of stoppage time. Ramirez floated a cross to the far post where Rashid connected from close range, but Kaith dived to his right to make a point-blank save and seal victory for Mohun Bagan.The tournament continues on Sunday in Ranchi, where Jamshedpur FC will face defending champions NorthEast United FC in a Group C match.