Bengaluru, September 19: Bengaluru FC beat Hyderabad FC 3-0 at the Sree Kanteerava Stadium tonight to secure their second consecutive win in the Indian Super League (ISL) 2024-25. Rahul Bheke, in the first half and Sunil Chhetri twice in the second half, found the back of the net to wrap up a comfortable victory to propel the Gerard Zaragoza-coached team to the top of the table. Coming off the bench in the 57th minute, Chhetri bagged a brace to become the joint-highest goal-scorer in the ISL, level with Bartholomew Ogbeche (63).
The home team maintained a steady control over the proceedings right from the kick-off, stretching the Hyderabad FC backline and creating scoring opportunities aplenty.
It resulted in them earning a corner kick in the fifth minute, with academy graduate Vinith Venkatesh stepping up for the set-piece duties. The 19-year-old, who netted in their win against East Bengal FC, delivered a curling ball on the far post for defender Rahul Bheke.
Bheke, one of the notable acquisitions made by Bengaluru FC in the summer, received the pass, created space, and calmly slotted the ball with his side foot past Hyderabad FC goalkeeper Arshdeep Singh. This was Bheke’s first ISL goal since he had struck one against Jamshedpur FC in February 2022. It was also his fifth goal in the ISL, with all of them coming from corners. He is the fifth-highest goal-scorer through corners in the competition, behind Bartholomew Ogbeche (10), Mourtada Fall (10), Roy Krishna (8), and Peter Hartley (6).
Hyderabad FC responded strongly, with Parag Shrivas curving a ball in for Devendra Murgaonkar from the left flank. Murgaonkar did well to get to the end of the pass but his shot was off target.
The game really sprung to life with Chhetri coming on to the field in the 57th minute. Roshan Singh drew a foul off Hyderabad FC defender Leander D’Cunha inside the 18-yard box, and up stepped Chhetri to convert the penalty and bag his first goal of the season. As clever as ever from the spot, the striker sent Arshdeep the wrong way by delicately kicking the ball into the bottom right corner to double Bengaluru FC’s lead.
Admirably, they didn’t take their foot off the pedal afterwards, regularly exploring opportunities upfront. Spanish striker Edgar Mendez drove inside the box from the right side and crossed in a delivery that was met by Chhetri with a diving header that nestled comfortably in the back of the net. Chhetri’s double strikes mean that eight goals have already been scored past the 85th minute of the matches in ISL 2024-25, demonstrating that games are going right down the wire in this campaign.
Key Performer of the Match
Sunil Chhetri (Bengaluru FC)
Chhetri played a terrific role in the second half, completing all nine of his attempted passes and netting twice, in addition to creating one goal-scoring opportunity as well and becoming the joint highest goal scorer in ISL history.
What’s next for both teams?
Bengaluru FC will play their next match against the Mohun Bagan Super Giant on September 28, whereas Hyderabad FC return to action on September 25 against Punjab FC.
Brief Scores: Bengaluru FC 3 (Rahul Bheke 5’, Sunil Chhetri 85’, 94’) – 0 Hyderabad FC
