Punjab FC beat Mohammedan SC 3-0 to secure second straight win in ISL Group C

Punjab FC secured a comfortable 3-0 win over Mohammedan SC in their second straight victory in Group C of the AIFF Indian Super League. Ninthoinganba Meetei, Samir Zeljkovic, and Manglenthang Kipgen were the scorers for Punjab FC

Hyderabad: Punjab FC comfortably defeated Mohammedan SC 3-0 for their second straight victory in Group C of the AIFF Indian Super League, which was played here at the GMC Athletic Stadium in Bambolim (Goa) on Sunday.

With this win, Punjab FC now have six points from two matches, moving one step closer to qualification for the semi-finals. Ninthoinganba Meetei, Samir Zeljkovic, and Manglenthang Kipgen scored the goals for the winners.

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Punjab FC head coach Panagiotis Dilmperis made one change to the starting lineup, with Spanish midfielder Dani Ramirez starting ahead of last match’s goalscorer Princeton Rebello, while Mohammedan SC head coach Mehrajuddin Wadoo named an unchanged eleven from their last match, which they lost to Bengaluru FC.

The first real chance came midway through the half when Bijoy Varghese saw his powerful header from a corner kick go agonisingly wide of the goal. Minutes later, goalkeeper Subhajit Bhattacharjee pulled off a brilliant save to deny Ninthoi.

The combination of Dani Ramirez, Manglenthang Kipgen, Ninthoi, and Muhammad Suhail continuously troubled the Mohammedan defence. The first goal came after all four of them combined with some clever one-touch passes. Kipgen split the defence open with a left-footed through pass that found Ninthoi, who had made a clever run, and the winger slotted the ball into the net past the on-rushing goalkeeper.

Punjab FC kept up the pressure, pressing high up the pitch, and the second goal came three minutes before half-time. Right-back Khaiminthang Lhungdim’s cross to the back post was headed back into the danger area by Ninthoi. New signing Samir Zeljkovic was unmarked at the penalty spot, and the midfielder’s left-footed shot, though not the sweetest connection, had enough power to find the bottom corner of the goal.

Punjab continued to control the pace of the game, maintaining possession and creating chances inside the Mohammedan half. On the other hand, the Kolkata side could not muster anything meaningful in attack, with Yash Chickro coming closest with an effort from outside the box.

The Shers scored their third in the 72nd minute after substitute Leon Augustine set up Kipgen inside the box. The forward made no mistake, finding the back of the net with a side-footed finish. Punjab kept pushing to increase the scoreline, with new signing Nsungusi Effiong creating chances after coming on as a substitute, but they could not find the target. The first shot on target for Mohammedan came in the final minute of stoppage time, but it was parried away easily by Muheet Shabir as Punjab FC posted their second consecutive victory.

Punjab FC will face Bengaluru FC in their final group match on 5th November, which will likely decide the winners of Group C, at the Jawaharlal Nehru Fatorda Stadium.