GOAL FEST BY WEST BENGAL! A GOAL STORM FUELED BY TWO PROLIFIC SCORERS!
With a spectacular performance, West Bengal with their offensive dominance, secured their second win of the Santosh Trophy 2024-25, defeating Uttar Pradesh with a stunning scoreline of 7-0 and maintaining a clean sheet on Monday, November 18, at the Kalyani Stadium.
With a front-foot footballing display, Bengal kicked off today’s match. In the 9th minute, with a long-range shot, Rabi Hansda opened up the scoreline. Within two minutes, a brilliant attack from the right flank, initiated by Bikram Pradhan’s accurate cross, led to Monotosh Maji’s incredible strike, doubling West Bengal’s lead.
In the 16th minute, Israfil Dewan dribbled into the box from the left and laid off the ball for his teammates. Without hesitation, Monotosh Maji placed the ball into the net. The fourth goal came when Abusufian’s shot inside the box was saved, but Rabi Hansda capitalized on the rebound and found the net.
In the 37th minute, Monotosh Maji completed his hat trick, changing the scoreline to 5-0 in favor of West Bengal. Before the first-half whistle, Israfil Dewan found the net from an attack, but it was ruled out due to offside.
In the second half, Bengal picked up the game from where they left off. In the 46th minute, Rabi Hansda was fouled roughly inside the box while on a goal-bound move, resulting in a penalty. Rabi Hansda took the penalty kick, but it was saved on the first attempt. However, he capitalized on the rebound, taking another strike and scoring the sixth goal for West Bengal, completing his hat trick.
In the 72nd minute, UP had their best chance of the match to open the score. Captain Yashraj Thapa made a run with the ball, dribbled, and delivered a defense-splitting pass into the box for Abu Azhar, but he couldn’t finish. Azhar took a shot, but substitute keeper Aditya Patra made a save, though he failed to grip the ball. However, on the second attempt, Abu Azhar couldn’t find the net.
However, in the 83rd minute, West Bengal found their seventh and final goal. From an attack and a selfless move inside the box, substitute player Aritra Ghosh, instead of shooting, back passed the ball to Abusufian, he took a shot, but his attempt was blocked on the goal line by an Uttar Pradesh defender. From the rebound, Rabi Hansda scored the goal.
After showcasing an amazing team game and a rhythmic display of football, Sanjay Sen’s West Bengal secured their position at the top of the Group C table with 6 points and 11 goals from 2 matches. They now have their next and last group stage game against Bihar on November 20.
