N.P. Pradeep (centre) gets Yusif Yakubu (left) and Surkumar Singh’s attention after the Federation Cup opener at the Salt Lake Stadium on Monday. Telegraph pictures

Calcutta: N.P. Pradeep brought relief to Mahindra United late in the second session as they moved into the quarter finals of the 28th Peerless Federation Cup on Monday.

The Mumbai side was done in by some brilliant goalkeeping till the 79th minute, first by Shibram Dey and then Pralay Dutta, till Pradeep found the target through a header following a Steven Dias corner.

Chirag United SC were left to defend for most of the match as the IFA Shield champions rode roughshod over the opponents. The Manjit Singh-Yusif Yakubu-Mohammed Rafi trio combined well to expose the limitations of the home team time and again only to be thwarted by a superb Pralay.

It could have easily been a 4-0 or 5-0 margin in Mahindra’s favour but their forwards squandered opportunities at will even as Amal Dutta’s side put up an inspiring performance.

Yakubu shot straight into Pralay from handshaking distance, Manjit was wayward from top of the box, Surkumar Singh’s shot was fisted away and K. Ajayan’s shot hit the crosspiece.

An injured Shibram was forced to be replaced by Pralay in the 38th minute but that didn’t change Mahindra’s fortunes. The substitute goalie was equally adept at keeping Mahindra’s offensive at bay.

United SC hardly made any move except for once in the first session when Theodore Sunday Wrobeh nicely shielded two defenders inside the box before failing to control his volley.

Despite managing a solitary-goal win, Mahindra impressed with their quick interchange of position and superb distribution that often had the rival team in disarray. They never let their frustration at not failing to find the target get the better of them. In the end, their professional approach paid dividends.

TEAMS

Mahindra United: Sandip Nandy, Surkumar Singh, N.S. Manju, Peter Siddiqui (Rauf Khan 64), N.P. Pradeep, Steven Dias (Sushanth Mathew 90), L James Singh, K Ajayan, Manjit Singh, Yusif Yakubu, Felipe vaz de Azevedo (Mohammed Rafi 42).

United SC: Shibram Dey (Pralay Dutta, 38), Sanjay Nag, Sheikh Ajim, Wazid Ali, Amandeep Singh, Ratan Das (Ashim Das 82), Crispen Chhetri, Avisehk Aich (Jiten Rai 74), Narugopal Hait, Maduako Chibueze Francis, Theodore Sunday Wrobeh.

Referee: K. Shankar (Tamil Nadu).