Punjab FC held to a draw by Bengaluru FC in a six goal thriller

Punjab FC (PFC) were held on to a 3-3 draw by Bengaluru FC as the ISL debutants played their fourth draw of the season in their eighth round match of the Indian Super League 2023-24 season which was played here at the Sree Kanteerava Stadium. Nikhil Prabhu, Dimitrios Chatziisaias and Luka Majcen scored for Punjab FC while Harsh Patre, Curtis Main and Javi Hernandez scored for Bengaluru. Bengaluru levelled the match from two goals behind denying Punjab FC their first win of the season.

Punjab FC Head Coach Staikos Vergetis made three changes to the starting lineup with Greek defender Dimitrios Chatziisaias coming back from suspension and replaced Amarjit Singh Kiyam, Ravi Kumar in goal instead of Kiran Kumar Limbu and Prasanth K. Mohan in place of Krishnananda Singh. The home side head coach, Simon Grayson set his side in a 4-4-2 formation with Indian team Captain Sunil Chhetri and Curtis Main leading the frontline.

The Shers had a lively start to the game with Madih Talal running the show from the center of the park. The Frenchman troubled the home side with his excellent runs and was creating space for Juan Mera and Luka Majcen ahead of him. PFC were putting continuous pressure on Bengaluru and that brought the first goal for the away side in the 19th minute. Madih Talal’s delivery was precise from a free kick and it found Nikhil Prabhu inside the box whose deft touch beat Gurpreet Singh Sandhu in goal to give PFC the lead. Bengaluru responded well, equalizing soon through a good team move. Javi Hernandez, Sunil Chettri and Harsh Patre combined well and the latter found himself in space inside the box. The youngster held his composure and finished with his left foot beyond PFC keeper Ravi Kumar.