East Bengal FC suffered a heartbreaking 4-1 defeat against Punjab FC as they failed to qualify for the ISL playoffs this season. Due to their loss, Chennaiyin FC have automatically finished sixth and have made it through to the playoffs, ending the intense race for the spots.
With Prabhsukhan Gill, Souvik Chakrabarti and Nandhakumar Sekhar unavailable, Carles Cuadrat had to turn to his reserves. Sayan Banerjee paid off the coach’s trust with a stunning goal from the edge of the box to make it 1-1 after Jordan’s opener. But, the home team made it 2-1 before half time with Madih Talal getting onto the scoresheet.
East Bengal FC lose to Punjab FC in final match of the ISL season
Absolute scenes in Delhi, Punjab FC are tearing apart East Bengal FC, 4-1 after 75 mins 👀🔥 pic.twitter.com/ELAGpq2pkY
— 90ndstoppage (@90ndstoppage) April 10, 2024
Jordan scored a second near the hour mark to make it even more difficult for the visitors to get back in the game. It was also the 10th assist for Talal in the league, who leads the list in that metric.
To make things even better, Luka Macjen scored a fourth and ended all hopes of a comeback. East Bengal played a ridiculously high line, which worked in the first half, but failed miserably in the second.
Their wastefulness in front of goal and lack of clear attacking threat ended up being the difference maker. And now, they must regroup and improve for the AFC competitions next season.
The remaining ISL fixtures, on the other hand, are only for pride with the top six and the league title for the most part, already decided.
