East Bengal 1-0 Namdhari FC LIVE Score, Durand Cup 2025: New Signing Hamid Ahadad Puts Torch Bearers Ahead

An absolute clanger from Niraj. The goalkeeper has been Namdhari's best player tonight, but he completely misses the plot as he rushes out to punch the ball away but grasps at air. The ball falls to Hamid Ahadad, and the Moroccan, who replaced Diamantakos a few minutes ago, heads it into an empty net.

East Bengal continue to dominate the match, with Diamantakos geting more and more involved. However, the final pass is still missing, and EBFC's new signing - Morocco's Hamid Ahadad - is warming up on the pitchside. Time for fresh legs?

East Bengal are pushing in the early moments for the opener, and Naorem Mahesh almost finds Diamantakos with a terrific cross from the left. Niraj does well to pluck it out of the air.

The players are out on the pitch again, and the second half is underway. Can East Bengal finally break the deadlock? Namdhari make a change at the break, with Seilenthang Lotjem replacing Jaskarnpreet.

The match stays goalless at the break. The actual game has been quite different, with Miguel Ferreira hitting the post THRICE. East Bengal, despite their dominance, will have their luck to blame not to have found the back of the net yet. Nine shots to their name, compared to zero from Namdhari FC.

How unlucky are East Bengal?! Miguel Ferreira is pulled down in the box by a Namdhari FC defender, but the referee waves play on. The East Bengal players are not pleased at all, and Mahesh earns a yellow card for complaining too much. In the resulting corner, the ball finds an unmarked Ferreira, who's bullet header hits the top bar AGAIN and ricochets back.

Correction: The yellow card was actually meant for Miguel Ferraira, not Naorem Mahesh Singh.

Mahesh takes a free-kick from the left edge of the box, and the ball finds Saul Crespo. The Spaniard heads it towards near post, and Niraj brings out a save of the highest order to palm it away from danger. The goalkeeper seems to have hurt himself in the process.

Despite the odd forward runs from Namdhari, East Bengal have contunued their dominance in the match. Chungnunga had a shot that was blocked by the defence, and Degol earns a yellow for a sliding challenge on Anwar Ali.

A very strange decision from Namdhari FC's manager, making a substitution in the 27th minute. Amandeep Singh comes off, and he is NOT happy about it. In his place, Dharmpreet Singh comes on.

How did that no go in?! Miguel Ferreira, who has been lively up front, has a shot from distance that rattled the right bar. Niraj was completely beaten. So, so unlucky for East Bengal.

East Bengal are getting closer with every minute to getting the opener. Nunga's inch-perfect cross almost found Dimi in the box, but luckily, it is millimetres ahead of the striker.

Other than two bursting runs from Namdhari, mos tof the attacking pressure has come from East Bengal's attackers. However, Nunga is not happy with Saul, with the Spaniard leaving him alone to deal with Namdhari's pacy wingers. East Bengal will need to be careful as they are committing numbers forward.

A very bright start from East Bengal in the opening four minutes or so. Miguel Ferreira had a shot off target in the opening minute itself, and since then, the Red and Gold Brigade have controlled posession. Namdhari are chasing shadows at the moment.

After shaking hands with the dignitaries, the players take their positions on the pitch. The referee blows his whistle, and we are underway at the Salt Lake Stadium.

EBFC 0-0 NAM (0')

Niraj Kumar (GK), Akashdeep Singh (c), Gurshan Singh, Cledson 'Degol' DaSilva, Amandeep Singh, Nimratpal Singh, Jaskaranpreet Singh, Lamine Moro, Kamalpreet Singh, Manish Chaudhary, Bhupinder Singh

Prabhsukhan Singh Gill (GK), Mohamad Rakip, Anwar Ali, Martand Raina, Lalchungnunga, Mohammed Rashid, Miguel Ferreira, Saul Crespo, Naorem Mahesh Singh (c), Bipin Singh, Dimitrios Diamantakos

Namdhari FC have been one of the surprise packages of Durand Cup so far. The I-League side have won both their matches in Group A, starting with a clinical 2-0 win againt South United FC, courtesy of goals from Bhupinder and Degol. In their second match against Indian Air Force FT, the Punjab-based side came back from behind to win 4-2.

East Bengal began their Durand Cup journey in an emphatic manner, winning 5-0 against South United FC in their first game. Five different players were on target for the Torch Bearers, including big names like Naorem Mahesh Singh and Dimitrios Diamantakos.

The Red and Gold Brigade have not had any matches since, with a two-week break until today's fixture.

The Durand Cup 2025 will be live-streamed on the SonyLIV app and website. The television broadcast will take place on the Sony Sports Network channels.

Good evening, football fans! The Durand Cup action returns to Kolkata, with East Bengal facing Namdhari FC. The action from VYBK kicks off at 7:00 PM IST, so stay tuned for pre-match updates and line-ups as they are released.