East Bengal Go Down 0-1 To Arkadag In 1st Leg Of AFC Challenge League Quarter-Final

East Bengal FC suffered a narrow 1-0 defeat against FC Arkadag in the first leg of their AFC Challenge League quarterfinal at the Vivekananda Yuba Bharati Krirangan in Kolkata on Wednesday.

Despite dominating possession and creating several scoring opportunities, the Red and Gold Brigade were unable to find the back of the net, with Yazgylych Gurbanov's early goal proving decisive.

Head coach Oscar Bruzon opted for five foreign players in his starting lineup, with Cleiton Silva starting on the bench. However, the hosts got off to a shaky start, which allowed Arkadag to capitalize early. In the 10th minute, a swift attacking move saw Gurbanov fire a precise strike from the edge of the box, beating goalkeeper Prabhsukhan Singh Gill at his near post.

Determined to bounce back, East Bengal pushed forward aggressively, frequently penetrating the attacking third. However, Arkadag's resolute defense, particularly the center-back duo of Saparov and Bashimov, held firm, limiting the hosts to just one shot on target throughout the match.

Set-piece opportunities gave East Bengal a few glimmers of hope in the first half, with a series of corner kicks in the 40th minute nearly leading to an equalizer. Meanwhile, Arkadag came close to doubling their lead on the brink of halftime, but Gill produced a crucial save to deny Gurbanov.

In the second half, East Bengal continued to search for a breakthrough, with Saul Crespo and Naorem Mahesh Singh dictating play in midfield, while Raphael Messi Bouli and Dimitrios Diamantakos led the charge up front. However, their finishing lacked precision, leaving them frustrated.

Crespo had a golden chance to level the score in the 71st minute, but his first attempt was blocked, and his follow-up effort failed to hit the target. Substitute PV Vishnu, who has been in fine form in domestic competitions, replaced Richard Celis and had an immediate opportunity, but he blasted his shot over the bar in the 75th minute.

Bruzon made further changes, introducing Cleiton Silva and Nishu Kumar in a final push for the equalizer, but Arkadag's defense remained impenetrable. A late chance fell to Crespo after a well-worked move from Vishnu on the left flank, but goalkeeper Charyyev Rasul reacted quickly to snuff out the danger.

With this result, East Bengal now face a challenging task in the return leg, scheduled for March 12 in Turkmenistan, where they must overturn the deficit to keep their AFC Challenge League campaign alive.