SEMI-FINAL 1 - 1ST LEG - FC Pune City 0 Bengaluru FC 0

Pune, BFC remain deadlocked

Pune, March 7: FC Pune City and Bengaluru FC left themselves with everything to do in the return clash as they played goalless in the first leg semi-final of the Hero Indian Super League at Shree Shiv Chhatrapati Sports Complex Stadium, Pune, on Wednesday.

At the end of the absorbing 90-minute clash, coaches Ranko Popovic and Albert Roca were smiling, locked in a warm embrace on the sidelines. Both coaches would be happy with their showing. Pune will know they have a chance, given that they got a 1-1 draw when they went to Bengaluru in the league stage and Roca’s team will have the backing of the home crowd at their Fortress.

League leaders Bengaluru were favourites for this semi-final clash but Pune measured up to the challenge till the final whistle, denying the visitors the crucial away goal, a rule that has been introduced in this edition of ISL for the first time. 

It was a tale of two halves at the Shree Shiv Chhatrapati Sports Complex Stadium. While Pune had a glorious chance to win the game late on in the second half, Bengaluru FC played their best football in the first 45 minutes.

After letting the home team dominate possession in the first quarter, Bengaluru FC slowly began to come into their own. At the half an hour mark, Sunil Chettri tested Pune City goalkeeper Vishal Kaith's agility from a free kick after Gurtej Singh brought down Miku just outside the box. From the resulting corner kick, Miku came close to opening the scoring but his header from close range flew over the bar.

Other than a cheeky backheel attempt from Marcelinho from an Ashique Kuruniyan cross in the 36th minute, FC Pune City's efforts on goal in the first half came mostly from outside the box which didn't really threaten Bengaluru goalkeeper Gurpreet Singh. 

Both teams went into the break knowing they hadn't really put enough pressure on the opposition. After the restart, Pune took the initiative. First, Kuruniyan took a shot from distance at goal which was well blocked by the Bengaluru denfese. A minute later, it was Emiliano Alfaro's turn to have a crack at goal but his shot was also blocked by the defenders.

The pattern of play continued to develop in the same fashion as the second half progressed. Pune City wanted to make most of the home conditions and looked eager to get a goal. Bengaluru, on the other hand, seemed to have settled for a draw in their mind already. 

The big moment for Pune came late in the match. With just 15 minutes left on the clock Marcelinho, who worked the channels all night, found himself in space to square a ball for Isaac Vanmalsawma for an easy tap-in. But the striker got his effort horribly wrong and the ball went wide of the goal.

Stallions and Blues play out goal-less stalemate in cagey first-leg

There was no separating FC Pune City and Bengaluru FC in an unremarkable first-leg clash in their playoff...

The first-leg of the Indian Super League (ISL) playoff clash between FC Pune City and Benglaluru FC ended in a drab 0-0 draw with neither side taking too many risks in the final third.

FC Pune City coach Ranko Popovic made as many as four changes in the starting XI which managed a 2-2 draw against Delhi Dynamos in their final league match. Lolo, Isaac Vanmalsawma, Marcos Tebar and Baljit Sahni were replaced by Gurtej Singh, Rohit Kumar, Marcelinho and Diego Carlos. With Marcelinho and Diego Carlos back, Marko Stankovic was deployed in the central midfield alongside Rohit Kumar and Adil Khan sent to the right-back position.

Alberto Roca on the other hand made just two changes in Bengaluru’s starting XI from the last encounter. The centre-back pairing of John Johnson and Juanan which missed out on the match against Kerala Blasters due to suspension, was back in action in place of Erik Paartalu and Nishu Kumar.

FC Pune City showed some urgency right after kick-off with the match being played on their home turf. Ashqiue Kuruniyan got an early opportunity to score the opening goal. A long ball from Sahil Panwar found the winger inside the box. Ashqiue trapped the ball with his chest but lost control thereafter and Gurpreet came out of his line to collect it comfortably.

Both the sides took a cautious approach in the first 45 minutes of the match, not wanting to concede first in the two-legged tie. The battle was mostly fought at the centre of the pitch with neither of the teams ready to penetrate into the attacking third.

Marcelinho and Diego Carlos were found switching positions constantly to confuse the opponents but the Bengaluru defence stood firm and did not allow the Pune attackers to impose any threat.

The visitors mostly focused on keeping control of the ball possession. They did not take unnecessary risks and thus the Pune backline was never really threatened. The only proper chance Bengaluru got was when Sunil Chhetri curled a free-kick but Vishal Kaith pulled off a brilliant save to deny the Blues’ skipper.

The visitors came close to score the opening goal of the match within five minutes of the second half. Dimas Delgado sent a deep corner inside the Pune box which was kept in play by Boithang Haokip. Both Sunil Chhetri and Juanan jumped in the air and attempted to head the ball but it went out of play amidst the confusion between the two.

Popovic introduced Isaac Vanmalsawma in the 56th minute in place of Ashique Kuruniyan with the young winger having a game to forget. Around the hour mark, Albert Roca brought in defensive midfielder Erik Paartalu in place of Toni Dovale. The change clearly indicated that the visitors were content with a point in this away fixture.

Isaac failed to score from a handshaking distance in the 75th minute of the match from Marcelinho’s pass. Emiliano Alfaro initiated the move with a run down the middle and switched the ball to Marcelinho on the right flank. The Brazilian entered the box and sent in a low cross for the Indian winger who just needed to apply a tap-in but failed to do so.

In the 87th minute of the match, Roca decided to replace striker Miku with new signing Daniel Segovia. It was a rare bad day at the office for the Venezuelan international who failed to make an impact in the final third.

It was all square at the end of 90 minutes as the action now shifts to the Kanteerava Stadium where Bengaluru FC will play host to Pune in the second leg.