Gallant Bagan go down to Taejon

India's champion club Mohun Bagan put up a spectacular fight before going down 1-2 to South Korean outfit Taejon Citizen and bowing out of the AFC Champions League, in Kolkata, on Tuesday.

The Kolkata club put behind the nightmarish experience of a 0-6 drubbing in the 'away' tie in freezing conditions in South Korea and not only matched the visitors in strength, but also created a number of chances, with Brazilian Jose Barreto playing a sterling role.

Barreto not only struck a late reducer but also caused panic in the Taejon defence with his deft footwork and ball control, as the hosts pulverised the visitors with waves of attacks in the latter stages of an absorbing match at the Salt Lake stadium.

Earlier, Lee Chang Yup put the Koreans into the lead in the opening half before Gong Oh Kyan made the scoreline 2-0 midway into the second session.

Bad luck also struck Bagan as the nimble-footed Baichung Bhutia, who showed early promise with his sharp movements and delectable skills, had to be replaced early in the second-half due to injury.

The visitors, who established early control, went into the lead in the 15th minute as Yup capitalised on a defensive lapse to head home, following a Chang Chul Woo floater from the left.

Bagan stoppers Issa Musa Iroje and Satish Bharti, standing close to Yup, were late in reacting to the floater, while custodian Amit Singha Roy was hopelessly out of position.

Egged on by a handful of colourfully attired local Koreans, who waved their national flag from the near-empty stands, the visitors began with a flourish, mainly concentrating on attacks down the left wing, where Chang Chul Woo did the spadework.

They played with short and neat passes, capping slow build-ups with sudden bursts of speed to leave the Bagan defenders exasperated.

However, Yup's goal served as a rude awakening for the local side as they began to show more initiative, with Geroge Ekeh, Barreto and Bhutia forming a good combination.

In the 20th minute, Ekeh went up the middle and fed Bhutia, who found an overlapping right back Dulal Biswas on the right. Biswas lost no time in letting loose a rasping shot from a narrow angle but the ball sailed inches over the bar.

Barreto then set up Bhutia with a long pass and the Indian skipper showed his silken skills to outmanouevre defenders Kim Dae Soo and Kim Chang Joong before his final pass was intercepted by a Taejon defender.

Crossing over, Bagan continued in the attack mode, and Bhutia showed remarkable flexibility in the 47th minute to get past a couple of rival defenders but in the process lost his balance and got injured. Sunil Chhetri came as the substitute.

In the 63rd minute Barreto managed to find the mark, but the goal was disallowed by Bangaldesh refereee Ramkrishna Ghosh, who ruled the Brazilian off-side.

But the Koreans increased the pace soon after and made the scoreline 2-0 in the 66th minute as Gongh Oh Kyun found the target off a Kim Sung Keun pass.