Kalinga Super Cup 2024: East Bengal rides Cleiton Silva Brace to beat Hyderabad FC in campaign opener

Cleiton Silva scored in the 33rd and 53rd minutes for East Bengal, while Saul Crespo scored the winner in the 79th minute.

Cleiton Silva celebrates after scoring one of his two goals against Hyderabad FC. (Image: EBFC)

Bhubaneswar: East Bengal rode on the support of Cleiton Silva to start their Super Cup football campaign with a fighting 3-2 win over Hyderabad FC at the Kalinga Stadium on Tuesday. The Group A match saw Hyderabad draw twice through Ramhlunchhunga and Nim Dorjee Tamang before Saul Crespo scored the winning goal for East Bengal in the 80th minute.

East Bengal are struggling to score goals this season. But on this day, Silva led from the front as they tried to attack from the start. The first big chance came in the eighth minute when Nishu Kumar delivered a cross from the left flank.

Silva managed to head the ball to Nandhakumar, creating a perfect volley chance. However, Nandhakumar’s shot hit the crossbar. East Bengal broke the deadlock in the 33rd minute. The move was initiated by Mohamad Rakip, who played a quick one-two with Nandhakumar on the right flank, before delivering an accurate cross into the box that evaded all the Hyderabad defenders.

Silva made a timely run into the box and smashed the ball home to give East Bengal the lead. Hyderabad FC restored parity in the 45th minute. Mohammad Rafi played a beautiful through ball to Lalchhanhima Sailo on the right flank.

Sailo traced the ball with great awareness and found Ramhlunchhunga unmarked in the penalty area, and he calmly steered the ball into the bottom corner of the net. However, East Bengal were undeterred by Hyderabad’s equalizer and started the second half with the same attacking attitude.

Silva remained a key figure in East Bengal’s attacking efforts, making another significant impact in the 54th minute. He showed his skill and precision by scoring with a beautiful curling free-kick from 30 yards, putting East Bengal ahead again.

Hyderabad again fought their way back into the match in the 79th minute when Makan Chote played a square pass to Ramhlunchhunga in the box. Ramhlunchhunga tried to go past Souvik Chakrabarti before the East Bengal defender decided to foul him. Referee Harish Kundu immediately pointed to the spot and Tamang converted the penalty to help Hyderabad draw level.

However, East Bengal found their hero in Crespo, who came on as a substitute at the start of the second half. Borja Herrera floated in a corner from the left and an unmarked Crespo easily headed in the winner to give East Bengal three crucial points.