Sanchita Chatterjee, BS News Agency, Kolkata, February 16, 2026: The red-yellow crowd got a new hero in their debut match. Spanish striker Yousef Ijejari's brace helped East Bengal FC start the ISL 2025-26 season in a great way by thrashing Northeast United FC 3-0 in Yuva Bharati. Along with Ijejari's two goals (65' and 71'), Miguel Ferreira scored the third goal in injury time (90'+2).
First half: Despite the dominance, the goal was elusive. Today, coach Oscar Brujon had arranged the team by placing Jackson Singh alongside Anwar Ali in defense. East Bengal was in an offensive mood from the start. The wing play of Bipin Singh and Nandakumar kept the NorthEast defence under pressure but could not find the net. Mohammad Rashid's shot hit the crossbar, which was the biggest chance of the first half. On the other hand, NorthEast's Jithin MS and Parthiv Gogoi tried to spread fear on the counter-attack, but the red-yellow defence remained unwavering. The first half ended goalless.
Second half: Ijejari's magic
After the break, the game turned around in the 65th minute. Ijejari scored his first goal for East Bengal by heading in Bipin Singh's measured cross. The Spanish forward did not cut the streak of this goal, but just six minutes later (71 minutes). Substitute Edmund Lalrindika's lob hit Northeast defender Miguel Jabaco and Ijejari, who coolly slotted it into the net.
The final surprise
Towards the end of the match, a shot from Thoi Singh hit the bar, which was Northeast's last chance to come back. However, in injury time (90'+2), Miguel Ferreira put the final nail in the coffin with a superb left-footed shot from Jay Gupta's through ball.
With this home win, East Bengal have made their presence felt in the league table fight with all three points. Yousef Ijejari scored a brace.
Result: East Bengal FC 3 (Ijejari 65', 71', Miguel 90'+2) - 0 Northeast United FC Man of the Match: Yousef Ijejari