East Bengal vs Paro FC Highlights: In the AFC Challenge League's first group stage match, East Bengal drew 2-2 against Bhutanese club Paro FC on Saturday, October 26.

East Bengal's next match in the AFC Challenge League are against Basundhara Kings (October 29) and Nejmeh (November 1). That is all from us. Hopefully the Red and Gold Brigade will come back to winning ways when we meet again.
The final whistle blows and East Bengal and Paro FC share the spoils in Thimphu. An excellent result for the Bhutanese club in their AFC debut, East Bengal will be relieved that they have finally broken their losing streak.
A 2-2 draw is a fitting result but the Kolkata club will be extremely disappointed with their performance albeit against the home side. The attacking showed a bit promise but the defence has looked at sixes and sevens.
90+2'Hijazi Maherand Prabhsukhan Gill clash together and the play is paused for an injury. The East Bengal defender has taken a bigger blow in the physical clash.
90+1'Milos Cupic makes a superb save to deny Dimitrios Diamantakos. An excellent save from him to keep the parity.
Six minutes added as Stoppage Time.
90'Anwar Ali and Hector Yuste team up in defence as East Bengal look to build from the back. But the Paro FC players are still pressing well at this stage of the game.
87'East Bengal are putting all the pressure on the home team as they push for the winning goal. Lalchungnunga takes a long throw-in but it is straight at the Paro FC custodian, who claims the ball without any diffculty.
84' PV Vishnu is sent through with a long pass and although the East Bengal player manages to get ahead of the Paro FC keeper, he fails to keep the shot on target.
PV Vishnu comes in for East Bengal replacing Nandha Kumar.
82'Another decent build-up from the home side but the final pass lets them down.
80'Evans Asante tries to find Richard Gadze with an early ball which is intercepted by Hijazi Maher.
79'Nandha Kumar sweeps in another cross which goes just beyond the reach of Diamantakos.
77'Madih Talal's direct free-kick is parried away by the Paro FC keeper. Then Hijazi Maher and Marko Ivanovic are involved in a spat, but referee intervenes quickly.
74'East Bengal denied twice in a couple of seconds. First, the cross from Nandha Kumar comes off the post and then a shot from Diamantakos is superbly blocked by Marko Ivanovic.
73'The header from one of the East Bengal player's head goes wide.
72'East Bengal win a corner courtesy of Nandha's industrious work on the right side.
Goaaaaaaaaaaal!! Dimitrios Diamantakos puts in the goal finally for East Bengal. A fizzed in pass from Nandha Kumar and Diamantakos finally does justice to it.
67'Nify foot work from Saul Crespo inside the box but then the Spaniard's curling effort goes off target. Madih Talal was very close to Saul and perhaps a pass would have brought the equalizer.
65'Evans Asante tries a glory shot from way outside the box and only manages to sky it. The Paro FC coach is not happy with the effort at all.
63'Paro FC are looking more likely to score the next goal. They have looked agile, purposeful and more clinical than East Bengal. The latest corner from the host team is just headed out by Hector Yuste.
Anwar Ali is the latest recipient of another Yellow Card.
59'Hijazi Maher is shown a Yellow Card for a poor foul.
57'From the corner, Anwar Ali's blistering strike goes off target.
56'Another howler in front of goal from East Bengal. Saul Crespo attempts to head it towards a teammate across the box when he should have finished it himself. The ball goes out for a corner.
55'East Bengal have looked far from threatening in the first ten minutes of the second half. They will have to be much more assured with possession and clinical in front of goal.
East Bengal Substitution
OFF: Naorem Mahesh
ON: Cleiton Silva
53'East Bengal get into an excellent position as Dimitrios Diamantakos gets in the box. But much to the surprise, the Greek drags his shot off target.
51'Another looped cross inside the box and Gill makes a good save to his left to deny Paro from their third goal.
50'Anwar Ali gets to the ball first but then his pass towards Gill is a very poor one. The ball goes out for a Paro FC corner. The visitors then manage to defend the corner.
48'Mahesh tries to find Diamantakos with a dinked pass, but Cupic dives forward and claims the ball just ahead of the East Bengal striker.
The team's journey in the AFC Challenge League will kick off against Paro FC on October 26. This match will be the first of three crucial encounters, with subsequent games scheduled against Bashundhara Kings on October 29 and Nejmeh SC on November 1. These matches, all set to be played in Bhutan, represent a significant opportunity for East Bengal to regain momentum and boost their morale for the ongoing ISL season.
Oscar Bruzon, the coach of East Bengal, expressed profound disappointment following the team's latest ISL setback against Odisha FC. However, he remains optimistic about the future, pledging a strong comeback in the season. "With six defeats in six ISL matches, Oscar Bruzon and his boys will be hoping to change their fortune in the AFC Challenge League, which is set to play a key part in their confidence ahead of the remainder of the ISL season," he stated. The AFC Challenge League not only offers East Bengal a chance to fine-tune their strategies but also serves as a vital platform to unite and strive for success.
East Bengal's participation in the AFC Challenge League comes at a time when the team is desperately seeking a turnaround. With the support of their coach and the potential for strategic refinement, the team embarks on this international venture with high hopes, aiming to restore confidence and achieve much-needed victories.
East Bengal: Prabhsukhan Gill; Provat Lakra, Hector Yuste, Anwar Ali, Lalchungnunga; Souvik Chakrabarti, Saul Crespo; Madih Talal, Nandha Kumar, Cleiton Silva; Dimitrios Diamantakos
Paro FC: Gyeltshen Zangpo; Marko Ivanovic, Kinley Wangchuk, Karma Chetrim, Nima Tsering; Tomoyoki Unno, Lobzang Chogyal; Evan Asante, William Opoku, Milan Lalic; Richard Gadze