Matchweek 15 of the Hero Indian Super League witnessed a thrilling encounter between Mumbai City FC and Bengaluru FC. While both teams gave it their best shot, Mumbai registered a 2-0 victory at their home, the Mumbai Football Arena. However, while 2-0 seems like a good score to secure a win, these goals were hard-fought as Bengaluru provided tough competition throughout the game.
To begin, Bengaluru looked fierce as their players attempted several shots which were blocked by Mumbai’s defence. However, in the 12th minute, the team from Karnataka witnessed their first big chance as Suresh Wangjam hit the bar. Later, there was not much action when it came to attempts as the battle between both teams mainly took place in the middle of the park.
While Bengaluru looked slightly better than Mumbai in this phase, Vikram Singh Pratap was doing his best to convert chances. From phenomenal runs inside the box to trying to convert half chances, Vikram seemed hungry to score, but his efforts simply went in vain. However, the 22-year-old’s hard work finally paid off when he scored a goal in the 42nd minute of the match.
Before Lalengmawia Ralte was seemingly fouled by Sunil Chhetri in Bengaluru’s penalty box, he passed the ball to Lallianzuala Chhangte. Instead of allowing the referee to call a penalty, The Islanders played advantage, and Chhangte squared the ball to Vikram Pratap Singh, who finished it well to give his team a 1-0 lead. While Chhetri did have the opportunity to equalize in the first half, he couldn’t make it happen and the first half ended in a 1-0 lead for Mumbai.
Mumbai City FC doubled the lead in the second half
The second half of this game began with Bengaluru FC trying to plot a comeback and equalize the score. While the team was able to create several chances, their final third disappointed them. Throughout the game, Sunil Chhetri and Oliver Drost weren’t able to do much as they were tightly marked by Tiri and Rahul Bheke. Further, Mumbai City FC doubled their lead as Vikram Pratap Singh scored his second goal of the night.
The goal by the young player was another example of him taking his chances perfectly. Mumbai City midfielder Alberto Noguera played a brilliant ball to Iker Guarrotxena on the right flank, who sent in a looping cross inside the box, which met with a wonderful header from Vikram. The 22-year-old’s performance throughout the game explains why he was able to notch two goals and give Mumbai the lead.
While a second goal is usually enough to seal the game, such wasn’t the case in this game. Despite being down by two goals, Bengaluru FC desperately tried to make a comeback but failed. The South Indian outfit even introduced Javi Hernandez, who couldn’t do what was expected of him. Despite multiple attempts from the attackers, nothing seemed to work in Bengaluru’s favor, and they lost the game 2-0.
Overall, the tale of the tape was that while Bengaluru held the ball, and looked better, they simply weren’t able to attack. One would imagine that when a team has the likes of Chhetri and Drost, they ought to score. Suresh Wangjam was another letdown in this game as he didn’t use his physicality inside Mumbai’s box, and nor was he able to get on the end of set pieces. In the 14 shots Bengaluru FC took in the game, they were only able to keep two on target.
On the other hand, even though Mumbai City FC did not dominate possession, what made the difference for them was their ability to take chances. Throughout the game, the players from Mumbai maintained a great work rate and took the chances given to them. Apart from Vikram Pratap Singh, Yoell Van Nieff, and Akash Mishra were two players who did a great job for The Islanders.
With this victory, Mumbai City FC is now in 4th position with 28 points. Their next game in the Hero ISL will be an away match against Chennaiyin FC. Meanwhile, Bengaluru FC finds themselves in 10th position with 15 points. In their next game against Hyderabad, Sunil Chhetri and his men will have to dig deep, and wear their scoring boots if they are to make anything positive out of this season.
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