KOLKATA: Albanian Armando Sadiku shrugged off his poor form to inspire Mohun Bagan to a come from behind 2-1 to win over FC Goa in the Durand Cup semifinal on Thursday. The win paved the way for a fairytale Durand Cup finale on ‘Super Sunday’ as it set up Mohun Bagan’s derby showdown against arch-rivals East Bengal in a repeat of 2004 final.
He capitalised on a Sandesh Jhingan howler to strike home the lead and eventual winner in the 61st minute.
Ferrando bolstered his defence in the final minutes, bringing in Brendan Hamill and Liston Colaco to stave off the wave of attacks from the Goans. Goalkeeper Vishal Kaith also should be credited for saving a sure-shot goal when he thwarted a Jay Gupta header in the 90+2nd minute.
This will be Mohun Bagan’s first Durand Cup final after 2019, In 2004, Mohun Bagan had lost to East Bengal 1-2. The latter are yet to win the silverware since 2000 when they had defeated Mahindra United via golden goal. Both Mohun Bagan and East Bengal have won the Durand Cup 16 times each. The final will be played on September 3 with kickoff scheduled for 4:00PM.