Former champions East Bengal drubbed debutants South United FC 5-0 in the opening match of the 134th Durand Cup football tournament at the Vivekananda Yuba Bharati Krirangan in Kolkata on Wednesday.
Lalchungnunga, Saul Crespo, Bipin Singh, Dimitrios Diamantakos, and Mahesh Singh scored for the winners.
In the first-half, the 16-time champions held the major share of possession with South United defending deep inside their own half.
It took them just 12 minutes to take the lead through Lalchungnunga. SUFC skipper Noel's headed clearance fell into the path of Chungnunga, which the defender slammed into the top corner to give his side the lead.
They doubled the lead in the 36th minute as Crespo converted a penalty after Edmund Lalrindika was brought down in the box by left-back Abdul Salha.
The half-time score-line could have looked a lot different had East Bengal converted the chances that came their way, with Vishnu hitting the post twice and Crespo missing three free headers.
East Bengal started the second half aggressively, but SUFC defended resolutely to keep their superior opponents at bay.
The third goal came in the 80th minute with two substitutes combining to convert a well-planned move.
Diamantakos' clever through pass between two defenders found Bipin Singh whose first-time curling pierced the net through the outstretched arms of goalkeeper S Nishanth.
Diamantakos then went on to score the fourth for East Bengal, converting a free-kick from the edge of the box which trickled into the net after the goalkeeper failed to collect a straightforward chance.
Captain Mahesh Singh netted the fifth goal for the Kolkata giants, expertly finding the top corner with his weaker right foot in the 90th minute to complete a five-star performance.
