Bhutia’s barrage batters Bagan

A record crowd of 1,31,7853 spectators turned up for the game. The official capacity of the Salt Lake Stadium is said to be 1,20,000. Wonder how they fitted the additional 12,000. The Bagan fans might have been disappointed with the result, but no one will dispute that it was a good game to watch on a Sunday afternoon.

Although Bhutia might have grabbed the limelight, two other East Bengal players were equally responsible for the victory. Samuel Omollo almost single-handedly thwarted Bagan’s attacks and Somatai Saiza controlled the mid-field well.

Bhutia, for his part, stayed in the attacking zone, waiting for the ball to come to him. Bagan defenders, instead of marking him, were trying to trap him off-side. In the 25th minute, Bhutia beat the off-side trap to set off the sequence that led to East Bengal’s first goal.

Bhutia ran into the Bagan half after receiving a pass from Tushar Rakshit. Close to the goal, a Bagan defender managed to put a foot to concede a corner. Saiza’s well placed flag-kick found Bhutia rising for the header.

Again, the Bagan defence made a save at the expense of a corner. Saiza, this time from the right, came up with another near-perfect flag-kick. Bhutia’s header this time hit a defender and came to the unmarked Nazimul Haque, who volleyed in for a goal.

Just a minute into the second half, Bhutia got the second goal for East Bengal, again through a Saiza corner kick. A floater from the right found Bhutia rising above Bagan defender Aloke Das to make it 2-0.

It needed Chima’s brilliance to reduce the margin in the 66th minute. A beautifull side-volley from a Basudev cross which beat East Bengal’s African goalie Haggi Azande Abulista hands down.

Bhutia’s patience paid off in the 40th minute when Nazimul Haque latched on to the ball close to the half line, ran into the Bagan box and passed on for an overlapping Shamsi Reza. Reza crossed over for Bhutia who, with quicksilver reflexes, deftly dodged custodian Dora to make it 3-1.

Three minutes later, Bhutia again ran unchallenged till rival medio Satyajit Chatterjee intercepted him. Strangely, the ball rebounded off Chatterjee’s feet and came back to Bhutia.

The boy from Sikkim needed no second asking. It was 4-1 for East Bengal and a hat-trick for Bhutia.