A resurgent Mohun Bagan tamed Tollygunge Agragami 3-0 to brighten their prospects for the title in an elite Super Six round match of the Kolkata Super Division football league on Thursday.
Brazilian Jose Barreto scored a brace while skipper Renedy Singh struck once as the green and maroon brigade completely dominated the proceedings at the Salt Lake stadium.
Bagan, who came into the reckoning for the title after defending champions East Bengal lost seven points in their last three matches, are on level terms with their arch rivals with 35 points from 14 matches.
With only two more matches to go, a play-off between the two sides to decide the champions looks almost certain.
Renedy, whose brilliant free-kick earned Bagan three points in the last outing, broke the ice in the 29th minute. Fed by a Mehtab Hussain through, the skipper raced into the rival box and finding the Tollygunge goalkeeper Chinmoy Banerjee ahead of the goalline, promptly lobbed the ball over his head into the net.
Bagan increased the scoreline in the 73rd minute as Barreto headed home a measured Renedy centre from the left.
The Brazilian displayed flashes of his brilliance again in the 80th minute. Latching on a loose ball outside the opponent's box, he ran solo, guarding the ball well against rival defender Isiaka, and neatly slotted home, giving no chance to the Tollygunge 'keeper.
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