Danish
Farooq
(8′)
gave
the
Blues
an
early
lead
which
was
extended
to
three
by
Prince
Ibara
(23′,
45′)
who
scored
a
first-half
brace
with
two
towering
headed
goals.
Gurpreet
Sandhu
was
called
into
action
early
who
saved
two
attempts
from
Cassio
Gabriel
and
Bipin
Singh
within
minutes
following
the
kick-off.
However,
it
was
BFC
that
took
the
lead
through
Danish
Farooq,
whose
left-footed
drive
from
outside
the
box
gave
no
chance
to
Phurba
Lachenpa
in
goal.
Prince
Ibara
then
joined
the
party
after
burying
a
header
from
close
range
to
double
the
lead
with
only
23
minutes
on
the
clock.
The
cross
from
Roshan
Naorem
was
brilliant
and
the
striker
from
Congo
made
no
mistake
in
finding
the
back
of
the
net.
The
Blues
continued
to
pile
more
pressure
on
the
Islanders
and
created
several
scoring
opportunities
around
the
half-hour
mark.
Des
Buckhingam’s
men
could
not
manage
to
contain
the
deficit
to
two
goals
as
Ibara
scored
again
with
a
header
moments
before
the
halftime
whistle.
Roshan
Naorem
was
again
the
provider
with
an
accurate
corner
which
saw
the
tall
forward
leap
the
highest
to
head
the
ball.
The
start
of
the
second
half
saw
more
of
the
same,
with
BFC
threatening
to
score.
However,
MCFC
got
more
hold
of
the
possession
and
created
better
chances
to
reduce
the
deficit.
Sunil
Chhetri
was
brought
on
to
replace
Ibara
who
left
the
pitch
owing
to
an
injury.
Five
minutes
past
the
hour
mark,
Apuia
saw
his
half-volley
from
long-range
hit
the
right-sided
post
and
come
out.
Ajith
Kamaraj
replaced
Naorem
who
was
struggling
with
a
muscle
issue
late
into
the
match.
The
fourth
official
added
five
minutes
for
stoppages
but
MCFC
could
not
break
the
BFC
defence.
The
Blues
held
on
to
a
well-deserved
clean
sheet
and
secured
all
three
points
in
a
sensational
overall
performance.
Bengaluru
FC
will
next
turn
up
against
ATK
Mohun
Bagan
at
the
PJN
Stadium
on
Saturday
while
Mumbai
City
FC
meets
Kerala
Blasters
FC
at
the
Tilak
Maidan
Stadium
on
Sunday.
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