FULL TIME! BENGALURU FC MAKE HISTORY! ENTER THE AFC CUP 2016 FINAL AFTER BEATING DEFENDING CHAMPIONS JOHOR DARUL TAKZIM.
FINAL AGGREGATE SCORE: BFC 4-2 JDT
Final moments of the game as Bengaluru are just on the brink of something special in the history of Indian football. First Indian side to reach the AFC Cup final. Kanteerava stands witness to October 19, 2016.
86' Eugeneson goes off after picking up a knock. He is subbed by Len Doungel. 21,379 is the official attendance figure for the match!
80' SUB: Chhetri out, Keegan in.
75' Okay folks, Bengaluru FC are completely dominating the game here. As the THIRD GOAL OF THE MATCH IS HERE! Eugeneson Lyngdoh the assist once again and Juan Antonio powerfully heads the ball in. This is surreal watching the match from the stadium.
Score: 3-1
67' WONDER GOAL! Sunil Chhetri with a brace! The Indian football talisman takes a shot from way outside the box and the ball curls in and blasts the top corner of the net.
Score: 2-1
Chants of BFC! BFC! are back.
63' Eugeneson and Chhetri combining brilliantly in the attacking third. From the way it looks, the home side can pop in the winning goal any time.
59' The Johor goalscorer Safiq tries at the goal from a distance, but no, the angle makes it just too difficult. No goal there.
54' Wonderful pace and dribbling in display by Eugeneson in the attacking third. He is rewarded with a corner. Not much comes of it, unfortunately.
48' Off the bar by Chhetri! Wonderful breakaway by CK Vineeth to deliver the lethal pass.
46' Off we go for the most crucial 45 minutes of the match.
HALF TIME! The second is expected to be very interesting now. The scores at Kanteerava are the same right now as it was in Malaysia after 90 minutes. The aggregate score is 2-2.
The game could very well go to extra time and penalties. This is getting incredible now. The next 45 minutes decides the match. Who gets to the final? Stay tuned, folks.
41' GOAAALL! And the stadium erupts! Sunil Chhetri heads in a wonderful corner taken by Eugeneson. That sensational pair again -- Chhetri and Eugeneson.
Score: 1-1
38' For Johor, Hariss definitely has been stealing attention in the middle of the field with his timely interceptions and crunching tackles as well as long passes.
35' It's difficult to get the ball off Nishu -- attacking and defending well both. However, JDT making it look so easy with their effortless passing and interplay.
30' BFC left back Nishu is stealing some attention with his trickery and strength and linking up so well with Chhetri.
26' The forward-defender duel between Chhetri and Kunanlan is catching a lot of eyes. Meanwhile, once again Eugeneson gives the home fans a great moment as he launches yet another attacking move from a corner.
24' Yellow card for JDT defender Antonio for time wating tactics. The tempo of the game has slowed down a bit.
19' GREAT PLAY! It all starts with a corner from Eugene. Johnson take a headed shot at goal but just missed. Vineeth and Chhetri were still prying for the lose ball. JDT goalkeeper Izham just relieved there was no goal as the Indian captain hit the crossbar. SO CLOSE!
15' The noise levels in the stadium have drastically gone down now. The aggregate score now is BFC 1-2 JDT. The home side are playing defensive now. Surprise surprise! JDT are showing why they are the defending champions.
11' GOAL! And the away side take the lead! JDT skipper Safiq makes use of a defensive error by the home team and heads it in for the first goal of the match. No advantage for BFC anymore, as the away goal has been scored!
5' Both sides enjoying a fair share of possession. For the home team, as expected, Sunil Chhetri down the left and Eugeneson Lyngdoh in the middle are creating all problems for JDT.
2' Johor get an early freekick following a foul by Bengaluru FC. Safiq delivered it well but the BFC defence clears it comfortably.
7:01 pm IST: HERE WE GO! THE MATCH KICKS OFF.
6:55 pm IST: The noise levels at the Kanteerava Stadium are at an all-time high. Last time a huge pomp like this happened was when Bengaluru FC won the I-League earlier this year defeating DSK Shivajians, at the same venue.
12 Banners surround the stadium this evening.
6:45 pm IST: As the teams go through their warmup session, we have the starting XI:
Bengaluru FC: Amrinder; Juanan, Johnson, Rino, Nishu; Alvaro, Eugene, Alwyn, Cameron; Chhetri, Vineeth.
JDT: Izham; Azrif, Antonio, Adil, Fazly, Kunanlan; Haris, Safiq, Amirul, Azammuddin; Safee.
6:25 pm IST: Good evening football fans! We've got a historic game in Bengaluru as the current sensation of Indian football, Bengaluru FC, takes on defending champions Johor Darul Takzim in the AFC Cup 2016 semifinals at the Kanteerava Stadium.
This is me, Sayantan, bringing you all the updates from the game here at the Garden City. Stay tuned. This is going to be a cracker. Get the preview of the match here
