In the final round of the Santosh Trophy 2024, West Bengal secured another win to confirm their place in the quarterfinals. On December 18, Bengal defeated Rajasthan 2-0. Two strikes, one in each half, earned them three more points this afternoon.
West Bengal kicked off the match with an offensive football display, creating several chances to open the scoring. In the 43rd minute, Mukesh Kumar had a great opportunity as he took a long shot from the right corner of the box, but the Bengal keeper made a stunning save. However, in the counterattack at the 45th minute, West Bengal took the lead.
From the left, outside the box, Rabilal Mandi took a stunning long-range shot on target toward the far post. In the first half, Rabi Hansda had a golden opportunity to score but missed. Despite this, the half ended in favor of West Bengal with the lead.
Early in the second half, in the 55th minute, from a set piece on the right side, Rabilal delivered a cross into the box, which Narohari headed into the goal, to made it two for Bengal. In the 76th minute, substitute player Aritra Ghosh found the net, scoring what would have been West Bengal’s third goal, but it was ruled out for offside in a decision that seemed controversial.
In the match, Bengal’s head coach, Sanjay Sen, made some tactical changes, as Bengal’s defense seemed a bit scattered in the first half before taking the lead. At halftime, the coach substituted goalkeeper Aditya Patra and brought in Sourav Samanta, and also brought some changes to the offense. The second half, however, was dominated by Bengal.
With that win, West Bengal earned 9 points from three matches and remained at the top of the group table. In today’s other Group A fixture, Jammu & Kashmir and Manipur played out a draw. Manipur stands second with 7 points from 3 matches. On December 21, West Bengal will face Manipur in their next fixture at 7:30 PM.
