East Bengal staged a late comeback to beat Kuwait’s Al Arabi SC 4-1 after extra time and qualify for the group stage of the AFC Champions League Two at the Salt Lake Stadium in Kolkata on Wednesday.The home side appeared set to exit the competition after trailing 0-1 with only 14 minutes of regular time remaining.Jay Gupta then brought East Bengal level in the 90th minute, giving the hosts a chance to turn the match around.East Bengal carried that momentum into extra time and took control of the game.Captain Mohammed Rashid put the Kolkata side ahead in the 108th minute to make it 2-1.Substitute David Lalhlansanga then extended East Bengal’s lead in the 117th minute.Rohit Danu completed the comeback by scoring in the first minute of stoppage time in extra time, sealing a 4-1 win for East Bengal.The victory sends East Bengal into the group stage of the AFC Champions League Two.East Bengal, who won the Indian Super League last season, their first top-flight triumph in 22 years to qualify for the continental competition, will now enter the West Region group stage in the continent’s second tier club football.The group phase will feature 16 teams playing in a round-robin format with home-and-away fixtures.
