Bhubaneswar, April 6: I League runners-up Neroca FC overcame a two-goal deficit to beat Kerala Blasters in the Hero Super Cup round-of-16 game and set up a quarterfinal clash with Bengaluru FC.
.@ILeagueOfficial side @NerocaFC comes back from behind to beat @KeralaBlasters in a thrilling encounter as they face @bengalurufc next in the quarterfinals.#HeroSuperCup #KBFCvNFC pic.twitter.com/Kq8t4iq9sk
— Indian Football Team (@IndianFootball) April 6, 2018
Blasters took lead through Victor Forcada (11th) before Prasanth doubled it (49th) as the Indian Super League (ISL) side looked well on course for a victory.
But Neroca fought back in remarkable fashion and scored three goals in 12 minutes to seal the contest.
Jean Joachim (70th), Aryn Williams (79th) and Felix Chidi (82nd) found the net for the winners.
Joachim, who moved to Neroca from I League outfit Chennai City recently, was adjudged Hero of the match in what was his debut for the Manipuri outfit.
The Debut Hero 💪🏼#HeroSuperCup #KBFCvNFC pic.twitter.com/wF6wqtxBip
— Indian Football Team (@IndianFootball) April 6, 2018
Neroca coach Gift Raikhan had brought in two changes after the break with Pritam Singh coming in place of Saran Singh and Govin Singh replaced by Ashok Singh.
In the hindsight, those changes proved to be a masterstroke.
In the pre-match press conference Blasters coach David James had said that he was expecting nothing short of a 'fierce game' against Neroca.
"It's definitely going to be a fierce game against a side who finished second in the I-League. We've seen some terrific matches in the qualifiers and the round of 16. We're also expecting a same type of game. But, we've come here to win and we'll try our level best to accomplish it", James had said ahead of the match.
James started with a cautious 4-2-3-1 with former Manchester United star Wes Brown leading a solid defence line along with national team captain Sandesh Jhingan. CK Vineeth led the attack. Raikhan, opted for a regular 4-4-2 formation with Frenchman Joachim and Nigerian Felix Chidi making up a capable strike force up front.
The proceedings at Kalinga Stadium turned out to be exactly a 'fierce' one as Neroca staged one of the greatest comebacks in the inuagural edition of the All Indian Football Federation-sanctioned tournament to book a last-eight clash with ISL runners-up Bengaluru FC.
With the win against Blasters, Neroca also becomes the third team from Northeast to make it to the last eight after Aizawl FC and Shillong Lajong FC.
Quarterfinal line-up
April 8: Aizawl FC vs East Bengal
Aprill 11: Mohun Bagan vs Shillong Lajong
April 12: Jamshedpur vs FC Goa
April 13: Bengaluru FC vs Neroca FC