Durand Cup 2025: Diamantakos stars as East Bengal edge past Mohun Bagan to book Semifinal berth

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East Bengal booked their place in the semi-finals of the Durand Cup 2025 with a hard-fought 2-1 victory over arch-rivals Mohun Bagan Super Giant at the Vivekananda Yuba Bharati Krirangan in Kolkata.

Greek striker Dimitrios Diamantakos was the hero of the night, striking twice either side of the interval to ensure his team's progression, while Anirudh Thapa's goal for Bagan proved a mere consolation. With this result, the 16-time Durand champions kept their proud record in Asia's oldest football competition intact.

For the Red and Golds, the evening began on a worrying note as in-form Moroccan forward Hamid Ahadad had to leave the field injured inside the opening 15 minutes. However, his replacement Diamantakos turned the contest in their favour. Coaches on both sides went in with different tactical plans - Jose Molina deploying a 4-4-2 for Bagan, while Oscar Bruzon packed the midfield, allowing Ahadad, and later Diamantakos, to lead the attack.

The first half ebbed and flowed with both teams creating half-chances. Miguel saw a free-kick soar over the target, while Naorem Mahesh's through ball created an offside goal for Diamantakos. The breakthrough arrived in the 34th minute when Bipin Singh was brought down inside the penalty area. Diamantakos stepped up and calmly placed his spot-kick beyond Vishal Kaith, giving East Bengal the lead. Bagan nearly equalised before the break, but Apuia's attempt missed the frame by inches.

After the restart, Molina introduced Australian striker Jason Cummings, yet it was East Bengal who extended their advantage. A well-constructed move involving Lalchungnunga, Edmund, Miguel, and Mahesh ended with Diamantakos finishing on the half-turn. His strike took a deflection off Spanish defender Alberto, leaving Kaith with no chance. Minutes later, Italian defender Kevin Sibille pulled off a heroic goal-line clearance to deny Jamie Maclaren and preserve the two-goal cushion.

Bagan finally found a glimmer of hope when Liston Colaco picked out Thapa from a corner routine, and the midfielder's curling effort found its way into the East Bengal net. With 20 minutes left, Molina threw on multiple attacking options, including Dimitrios Petratos and Suhail Bhat, in search of an equaliser. Bruzon responded with fresh legs of his own to shore up the midfield and defence.

Despite Bagan's late push, East Bengal held steady under pressure to emerge 2-1 winners in front of a packed Kolkata crowd. Bruzon's men now move into the semi-finals with momentum on their side, riding on Diamantakos' decisive brace and a disciplined defensive display.