Mumbai City FC take down FC Goa 2-1
25 Nov 2017 5:22 PM GMT
Mumbai: The Islanders lined up in a 4-4-2 shape which saw the return of Balwant Singh in the attack as winger Sahil Tavora was demoted to the bench. Cameroonian Emana Achille was introduced in the team in the absence of Leo Costa who was ruled out due to a hamstring injury.
On the other hand, Sergio Lobera named a side which kick-started the match in a 4-2-3-1 formation with Chinglensana Singh Konsham replacing Bruno Pinheiro in the central defense and Arana Rodriguez coming in for Brandon Fernandes.
The first real chance of the match came in the 15th minute when Ferran Corominas released a cross from the left-wing for Manuel Lanzarote, who was waiting for the delivery inside the Mumbai City FC box. However, before the ball could reach the Spanish striker, Gerson Vieira jumped high and cleared the danger through his head. Just seven minutes later, the visitors nearly conceded an own goal. An onrushing Balwant Singh was fed the ball at his feet centrally and the Indian international laid it off for the 35-year-old Emana Achille up-front. FC Goa's right-back Seriton Fernandes put in a slide to clear the danger but his clearance reached the goalpost. However, it struck the inside of the post and rolled out
of danger.
Despite the low ball possession maintained by The Islanders, the troops in blue tested the Goan defensive during crucial moments. Around the half-hour mark, Emana Achille's through-ball to Balwant Singh saw the latter take a shot at the target from inside the FC Goa box; however, the former Mohun Bagan forward's left-footed delivery hit the net.
In the dying moments of the first half, Amrinder Singh pulled off a stunning save which came off Ferran Corominas' foot, just inches away from the target as Abhinash Ruidas' defensive goof-up tensed things up for Alexandre Guimaraes' army.
That was the end of proceedings in the initial half as the two teams walked off the pitch on a 0-0 scoreline at the half-time whistle with the hosts completing a total of 132 passes in comparison to Goa's 351.
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