Defending champions Mohun Bagan, Kolkata, warded off a second-half onslaught to down Salgaocar, Goa, by a solitary goal and move to second place in the Oil PSU National Football League, at the Nehru stadium in Margao, Goa, on Tuesday.
For Bagan, who lost to Salgaocar in the first leg, it was sweet revenge. They scored the all-important goal in the 57th minute through Baichung Bhutia following a counter attack.
Medio Basudeb Mondal, from the right, sent a diagonal pass to Renedy Singh, on the left. The latter put Bhutia in possession with a measured cross and the ace striker finished in style by tapping the ball to the far corner of the net.
Bagan, who defending their citadel dourly in the second-half, had a chance to increase the lead in the dying minutes but Sunil Chettri, who was unmarked, had the mortification of seeing his shot crash into the crossbar, following a pass from Rendy Singh.
Salgaocar had the major share of exchanges and scoring chances but lack of finishing was their folly. Jatin Bist and Dharamjit Singh twice failed to score from inside the box.
With this win, Bagan moved to second place with 25 points from 14 matches. Salgaocar slipped to third place, with 24 points from as many matches.
East Bengal lead the table with 34 points.
