Bengaluru: Bengaluru FC entered the ISL-9 semifinals on Friday night, under bizarre circumstances.
In unprecedented scenes at Sree Kanteerava Stadium, Kerala Blasters FC walked off the pitch after Sunil Chhetri scored from a quickly taken free-kick in the seventh minute of first-half extra time in Knockout 1 of ISL-9.
Awarded a free-kick near midway into the rival half, old warhorse Chhetri spotted Kerala Blasters goalkeeper Prabhsukhan Gill out of his line and lobbed the ball over him into the goal.
Referee Crystal John signalled a goal, leading to celebrations for the home team. But Kerala Blasters players and the entire bench erupted in protest, claiming that they didn’t hear the referee’s whistle and neither had he marked out the distance of the wall.
Chhetri and his teammates, on the other hand, had no doubt that the referee had given the permission for the free-kick to be taken.
The referee refused to entertain impassioned pleas from Kerala Blasters players and stuck to his decision. Before long, coach Ivan Vukomanovic gestured to his players to come out of the field. They took their time, but ultimately walked out.
The match officials waited around 20 minutes for Kerala Blasters to come back, consulted with the match commissioner before blowing the final whistle.
The official verdict: Kerala Blasters forfeited the match and Bengaluru FC won 1-0,
They will face Mumbai City FC in the first leg of semis on Tuesday.
Tomorrow, Odisha FC will face ATK Mohun Bagan in Knockout 2 at Salt Lake Stadium.
