Luka Majcen played the perfect super-sub role as he found the winner in the last minute of the added time to help Diamond Harbour FC (DHFC) beat Mohammedan Sporting 2-1 and make a memorable debut in Durand Cup 2025 at the Salt Lake Stadium here on Monday.
Mohammedan led the opening half of the Group B match with Adison Singh’s goal before DHFC made a strong comeback in the second half. Sairuatkima found the equaliser in the 51st minute before the Slovenian forward, Majcen, who came in as a second-half substitute, scored the go-ahead goal in the last minute of the action.
Mohammedan decided to keep faith in its domestic recruits and put up a good fight against DHFC, which is rapidly emerging as a big name from the city.
DHFC, which has qualified for the I-League this season, started well and came very close to scoring in the 27th minute when its Brazilian forward Clayton Da Silva fired a sharp volley from the top of the Mohammedan box just to see his attempt miss the mark by inches.
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There were more opportunities for DHFC in the opening quarter, but poor finishing continued to keep the team from finding an early lead.
On the other hand, Mohammedan showed better finishing skills as it took the lead off a fast counter-attack in the 36th minute. Ashley Koli essayed a fine through pass that found Adison unmarked near the DHFC box. The latter fired a rasping grounder to beat goalkeeper Mirshad K and score.
DHFC regrouped well after the break and found the equaliser off a Samuel Lalmuanpuia corner, which went deep into the Sporting box, and Sairuatkima made no mistake with his header.
Just when the match appeared to be headed for a draw, Majcen, who moved from ISL side Punjab FC this summer, found the target after a mix-up in the Mohammedan box, to secure the full quota of points for DHFC.
Content Source: sportstar.thehindu.com