Sunday, 25th January 2026: In a cagey affair at the Naihati Stadium in Kolkata, 10-man East Bengal defeated Mohun Bagan SG by 2-0 in their final match of the Reliance Foundation Development League (RFDL) 2025-26 Regional Qualifiers on Sunday.

East Bengal had the better share of opportunities in the first half as they pushed the Mariners' defence on the back foot, however, failed to take the lead.

The Red & Gold Brigade continued to look sharp following the restart and quickly took the lead in the 46th minute. Guite Vanlalpeka, who earlier came agonizingly close to scoring for East Bengal, delivered a dangerous pass inside the box. Mohun Bagan's Gurnaj Singh Grewal attempted to clear his lines but the ball rebounded off Laikhuram Ricky Singh and ended up straight into the back of the net.

The game picked up pace following the change in scoresheet as Mohun Bagan, too, made their first set of close attempts. However, the East Bengal defence led by Sonam Tsewang Lhokham maintained their stance.

Despite going down to 10 men with the sending off of Guite, East Bengal looked sharp in the attack and went on to double their lead in the stoppage time. Laikhuram Ricky Singh once again made it to the scoresheet as he finished off a fiery counter-attacking move in the 92nd minute after Debojit Roy's attempt was saved by Mohun Bagan goalkeeper Priyansh Dubey.

The result means Mohun Bagan, East Bengal and Diamond Harbour progress to the Zonal Group Stage of the league.

Results
East Bengal 2 (46', 90+4' Laikhuram Ricky Singh) - 0 Mohun Bagan Super Giant

Bengal Future Champs 0-2 Victoria Sporting Club (33' Nur Islam Mondal, 81' Subasish Nayak)

Diamond Harbour 1 (69' Thanglalsoun Gangte) - 0 United SC