New Delhi: Daniel Lalhlimpuia scored twice in three minutes as Delhi Dynamos FC stunned Bengaluru FC 3-2 in a closely fought Hero Indian Super League clash here Sunday.
Players from both sides wore black arm bands as mark of respect to the martyrs of the recent terrorist attack in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pulwama. Ulises Davila’s goal in the ninth minute gave Delhi the lead and opened the game up in midfield.
Boithang Haokip scored in the 19th minute to bring Bengaluru level. Sunil Chhetri’s 72nd-minute strike looked to have put Bengaluru in the driving seat before Daniel Lalhlimpuia struck twice (77′, 80′) to seal a win for his team. The win meant Delhi are now unbeaten in their last five matches, winning three of them. Bengaluru, on the other hand, have lost three of their last five matches, picking up just four points after being unbeaten in the first 11 games of the season. Bengaluru, however, are perched at the top of the table with 31 points from 16 matches. Bengaluru started on the front foot and almost scored in the first minute. Udanta Singh combined with Miku on the right flank, dribbled into the box and squared the ball back to the Venezuelan striker who shot wide of the target. Despite the visitors’ ascendancy, Delhi Dynamos drew first blood in the ninth minute.
Nandhakumar Sekar’s low cross into the box was punched into the feet of Davila by an outstretched Gurpreet Singh Sandhu. The Mexican forward found the back of the net with a powerful shot. Bengaluru were back in the contest in the 19th minute. Similar to the opening goal, Francisco Dorronsoro had trouble collecting a Xisco Hernandez cross from the right flank and his punch sent the ball to Boithang whose first-time shot struck the net. (PTI)
