Mumbai City Defeat League Leaders Mohun Bagan through a Solitary Noufal Strike

Image Credit: Debjoy Biswas

Mohun Bagan Super Giants took on Mumbai City FC in a crucial top half clash in the ISL on 20th March at the Salt Lake Stadium in Kolkata. Both teams mostly went in with unchanged starting lineups. The match started with both teams trying to control the midfield. Mohun Bagan was depending more in winf play with Dimi Petratos and Colaco shifting wings constantly. Mumbai depended more on the counter through the usual route of Kauko, Pereyra Diaz and Ortiz. Chhangte and Noufal were looking to go on overlaps consistently.

However the first critical chance came off a Mohun Bagan counter in the 17th minute when Colaco ran with a stray ball on the counter. He passed it on to Cummings. But the shot was blocked off by Nuno Reis.

Another quick counter almost gave the lead to Mumbai City in the 22nd minute. Chhangte found himself one on one with Kaith after Kauko played a through ball that opened exposed the Mariners defense completely. But Kaith made himself big and completed a brilliant save. The second ball was challenged by both Akash and Mehtab. But the defender came out on top to clear the ball away for a corner.

The deadlock was finally broken on the 27th minute. Another counter was started by Kauko who first passed it to Chhangte. He played the ball square to Diaz who laid to ok to Kauko again. This time Kauko played a perfect through ball onto the left winger Noufal who calmly instepped the ball on the far corner past a stretched Kaith. Against all odds, Mohun Bagan was now trailing on their home turf.

As if on a mission to restore pride, the Mohun Bagan attackers now wanted to strike back early. Mumbai held back hoping to catch Mohun Bagan again through long balls and counter attacks. On the 40 minute mark, a cross from Dimi from the left flank found Cummings who connected a strong header. But Lachenpa made a brilliant save to deny the Australian.

Ok the 44th minute the match once again came to life when Mohun Bagan forced a brilliant double block from Phurba again. He first fended off a dangerous ball from Dimi and then blocked out a follow up shot from Cummings. From the counter, another double save was made this time from Kaith who made a full stretch save from Chhangte and then lifted himself up for a flying save from Ortiz.

At the crux of half time, Dimi forced another save from a 25 yard freekick from just outside the box. Due to the exploits of Kaith and Phurba, the match remained at 1-0 in favor of Mumbai at half time. A closely contested half that set up a mouth watering prospect for the second half.

Mohun Bagan started the second half with a double substitution. Robson came on to replace Cummings while Deepak Tangri came on to replace Anirudh Thapa. Robson was looking to make an immediate impact off the bench as he started in a spritely fashion on the left wing gaining a corner immediately. However Tangri conceded a yellow card on the 48th minute for a cynical challenge on Kauko. The midfield domination of Kauko was becoming increasingly difficult for Mohun Bagan to deal with. Mohun Bagan had also struggled to bring Maclaren in the game so far to create any impact. That remained a headache for them at the beginning of the second half as well.

On the 52 minute mark Pereyra Diaz almost opened it up through the usual pattern. Akash Mishra played a long ball this time after snatching the ball from Colaco. Diaz followed the ball and brought it down in between Mehtab and Alberto with a deft touch. His shot flew past the post. But it was close. This would turn out to be his last contribution of the match as he hobbled off the pitch with a cramp that forced Kratky to make his first change of the match. Vikram Pratap Singh was brought on.

On the 59 minute mark Vikram Pratap Singh was opened up from a Kauko freekick. Kaith ensured another save from a tight angle. His precise distribution found Colaco. Maclaren played a shield with Colaco to complete his first attempt that flew just beyond the woodwork.

But this started a series of attacking movements for Mohun Bagan through a string crosses inside the box. This ended with a yellow card conceded by Dimi on the 62 minute mark for his mistimed tackle.

The crowd erupted ok the 64th minute as Mohun Bagan finally found the back of the net. A long range left footer from Colaco was tamely clawed away by Phurba and found the header of Petratos who slotted the ball in. But the offside flag was raised and the scoreline remained at 1-0 for Mumbai.

Mohun Bagan attack was increasing in intensity as Colaco gained a freekick just outside the box on the 69th minute. The dangerous ball put in the six yard box was first saved by Phurba and then cleared away by Nuno Reis. A couple of follow up corners were calmly defended by the Mumbai City defense.

In the next 5 minutes before the water break, Mohun Bagan kept up the pressure with a string of corners. But none of them resulted in a truly good opportunity. As both the teams went in a for a breather, the match was still hanging by the thread.

As Mohun Bagan kept pushing for the goal, it became an attack vs defense game in the last 10 minutes. Mumbai made a double change on the 86th minute to bring on Amandeep and Ayush Dev to replace Noufal and Kauko. Kratky was looking to solidify the defense kore with these changes. Mohun Bagan had brought on Sahal to replace Deepak Tangri in the meantime. Mehtab Singh was then replaced by Manveer Singh on the 88th minute. Lobera has played all his cards now in search for the elusive goal for the night.

Robson kept putting in balls in the box that looked dangerous. But the defensive low block hindered any positive outcome for the Mohun Bagan attackers. Maclaren, Dimi or Liston were unable to find themselves at the end of these crosses.

With 8 minutes added on, Mohun Bagan started to push with renewed energy and gained a corner in the first minute of the added time. But the ball was defended away again. Alberto tried a volley from almost 40 yards. But the shot went hopelessly wide. Mumbai finally found a breather. Sahal attempted another long ranger from the edge of the box on the 93rd minute. But this also flew way over the bar. Unable to create space through the middle, Mohun Bagan was now attempting long rangers as their last resort.

Another corner was conceded by the Mumbai defence on the 94 minute mark. The stray ball went across the box evading everyone resulting eventually in another corner. Robson played a beautiful one two with Apuia to finally open up space for a shot. The attempt was unfortunately a take one and was collected calmly by Phurba. Maclaren found himself open from the corner. The ball was blocked. But Mohun Bagan gained a freekick right on the D box. This was surely the last chance for them and most probably the best one.

Dimi, Liston and Robson lined up behind the ball. As Robson walked away, it was left to either Dimi or Liston. Dimi stepped up with power. But the ball flew over the bar. The added time was also over. As the referee drew curtains with the final whistle, Mohun Bagan had suffered their first defeat of the 25-26 campaign. Mumbai City FC on the other hand completed a memorable win through a solitary goal.