Pune, April 18: Strong contenders East Bengal suffered a major jolt in their I-league campaign losing 1-2 to Pune FC at the Balewadi Sports complex here today.
The result puts East Bengal on 41 points from 20 matches, five points behind present League leaders Salgaocar SC who sit pretty at the top with 46 points from as many.
East Bengal did start on a bright note with Ugba Opkara giving them the lead in the 18th minute. A Sushant Mathews corner was headed by Rahim Nabi to Opkara, whose snap shot bulged the net.
Pune FC restored parity 12 minutes later through Mandjou Keita. Following a lob from the midfield, East Bengal custodian Sandip Nandy was slow to leave his line and Keita lobbed it over to make it one-all.
East Bengal did enjoy more of the possession but their defence let them down.
-Agencies