Calcutta: On Sunday, Mohun Bagan had conceded a goal against East Bengal minutes before half-time which changed the complexion of the CFL Derby.

On Wednesday, Bagan scored a goal seconds before the half-time whistle and that turned the match against a 10-man FCI at the club ground. Four more in the second half saw Bagan recording an emphatic 5-0 win which could help them win the title for the first time since 2009-10. Dipanda Dicka, who could not score against East Bengal, was the hero with a fine hat-trick, while substitute Tirthankar Sarkar and Lalchhawn Kima scored one each.

Mohun Bagan (23 goals in nine matches) have scored seven goals more than their arch-rivals (16 in eight matches). Now the pressure will be on East Bengal to score as many as possible against Peerless SC on Thursday. "We knew we have to score goals. That's why my instruction was not to waste time in celebrating goals. Yes we have scored five. But whether it would help us depends on how many East Bengal score in their next match," coach Shankarlal Chakraborty said after the match.

Mohun Bagan could have won the match by a bigger margin. But Henry Kisekka was guilty of missing three clear chances in the first half. As the fans started getting restless, Dicka got his first. Abhishek Ambekar's free-kick was headed towards the goal by Britto PM. FCI goalkeeper Dhananjay Adhikary managed to stop the ball from going in. The loose ball fell for Dicka who was at the right place at the right time to prod it home.

Pintu Mahata and Tirthankar were called into action for the second half in place Mallick and Britto.

Bagan continued their attacking prowess in the second half and they doubled their lead in the 62nd minute. It was Arijit Bagui who floated in a cross into the six-yard box and Dicka made no mistake in burying it into the net.

Six minutes later, the Cameroonian completed his hat-trick with a similar goal when substitute and Derby hero Mahata dished a perfect low cross for the I-League Golden Boot winner. Incidentally this was Dicka's second hat-trick of CFL 2018 and he now has 10 goals under his belt.

Soon, frustration got the better of Laxmi Kanta Dey as the defender was shown a straight red in the 72nd minute when he hit Dicka's face with his elbow.

Sarkar scored the fourth for Bagan from the ensuing set-piece as his left-footed curler nestled straight into the net.

Bagan pumped in the fifth in the 84th minute when Kima header pierced the net from a flag-kick.

"It was great to score a treble and credit goes to my teammates. I try to improve with every match," Dicka said.