MSC, East Bengal to meet in semis

Mohammedan Sporting Club set up a mouth-watering semifinal clash against East Bengal after a 2-1 victory over their Kolkata namesake in the final Group A fixture of the Sheikh Kamal International Club Cup at the MA Aziz Stadium in Chittagong yesterday.

The Black and Whites, who emerged runners-up in their group behind Afghan champions De Spin Ghar Bazan, made sure there will be two local outfits in two semifinals. Mohammedan will take on Group B champions East Bengal on Tuesday while Group B runners-up Chittagong Abahani will take on the Afghan champions on the following day.

Following their emphatic 6-1 win over Solid SC and the luxury of needing only a draw to advance, the Motijheel outfit began enterprisingly yet lacked the pace that they showed in their previous matches.

Mohammedan, though, came close to taking the lead in the 10th minute when Peter Akinyele availed a fumble from an opposition defender, but only managed to hit the post after dancing past goalkeeper Billah Hossain.

The Nigerian striker, who was playing his first match of the tournament, however, made amends as he put the Black and Whites ahead with a glancing header off a Faisal Mahmud corner in the 18th minute. Kolkata Mohammedan, needing a big-margin win to advance, saw their forward Ajay Singh rattle the crossbar on the half-hour mark.

The home side then came close to doubling their lead two minutes before the break, but Akinyele fluffed the chance incredibly. They had to pay the price in next minute when Kolkata Mohammedan striker Kazeem Amobli snatched the ball from defender Mintu Sheikh and found the back of the net with a powerful angular shot.

Mohammedan looked tired in the second half and concentrated on strengthening the backline, allowing the opposition to launch a wave of attacks. Mohammedan defenders made some decisive tackles while goalkeeper Ashraful Haque Rana came to the rescue a number of times before Akinyele wrapped up the victory by availing a fumble of goalkeeper Billal three minutes into time added on. 

Earlier, De Spin Ghar Bazan beat Solid SC 3-1 to grab the top spot. The Afghan premier league champions came into the match needing only a draw to advance, but showed character by scoring three goals in the second half after having conceded the lead two minutes before the break.

Solid SC took the lead through Nigerian Olayemi in the 43rd minute, but Mustafa Afshar levelled the score with a side-volley in the 72nd minute before Reza Allah Yari's tap-in gave them the lead six minutes later. Skipper Gholam Hazrat then wrapped up the victory striking in the 88th minute.

Semifinal line-up

De Spin Ghar Bazan     v     Chittagong Abahani    27 Nov
East Bengal     v     Dhaka Mohammedan     28 Nov