Jorge Pereyra Diaz announced himself to the Bengaluru FC faithful with a 95th-minute winner in the Durand Cup quarterfinal against the Kerala Blasters to set up a clash against Mohun Bagan Super Giant in the semifinal.
Just as the match seemed to be meandering towards a penalty shootout, Diaz popped up after a corner from Lalremtluanga Fanai was poked into his path by Sunil Chhetri for the Argentine to lash a volley past Sachin Suresh and extend the Blasters' wait for a first national trophy.
Both sides were at full strength, and it made for a tight contest, and an intriguing tactical battle. Bengaluru definitely had the better control in midfield, as Alberto Noguera and Pedro Capo asserted their class in that area of the field. However, in the first half, all the best chances fell to the Blasters. Gurpreet Singh Sandhu had to save smartly twice - once from Noah Sadaoui's close-range effort, and one off a powerful shot from Kwame Peprah. Adrian Luna also went close from close range, but skied his shot.
Bengaluru created chances too, but many of them ended with tame efforts rolling through to Sachin, particularly from Sivasakthi Narayanan.
Towards the end of the second half, just as the match was beginning to get really scrappy, it looked like a penalty shootout was inevitable, as Luna, Sadaoui and Bengaluru substitute Edgar Mendez all had pops from range that didn't trouble either goalkeeper. But eventually, Pereyra Diaz popped up with the defining moment of the game, and now Bengaluru are just two wins away from yet another trophy.
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