ISL: Venkatesh's debut goal helps Bengaluru FC edge past East Bengal
Bengaluru FC started their Indian Super League campaign with a 1-0 win over East Bengal with 19-year-old Vinith Venkatesh scoring in his debut match here on Saturday.
Venkatesh's 25th-minute strike was the difference between the two teams.
It was a fairytale ISL debut for Bengaluru FC academy graduate Venkatesh. He showed glimpses of his brilliance in the recently concluded Durand Cup and carried that momentum into the new ISL season.
It was a cagey start from both sides with plenty of tackles flying in, mostly to disrupt the momentum.
Nandha Kumar was guilty of a mis-timed challenge in the third minute when he brought down Suresh Wangjam. The East Bengal FC winger received a yellow card for his reckless tackle.
Despite the caution, tackles kept flying as Lalchungnunga and later Hector Yuste also joined Nandha into the referee's book.
The first real opportunity of the game came when Jeakson Singh collected a loose ball outside the penalty area. He launched a thumping effort towar