ISL 2023-24: Mohun Bagan Super Giant beats Hyderabad FC to break into top four

First-half strikes by Anirudh Thapa and Jason Cummings ensured three points for the Mariners from this clash.

Jason Steven Cummings of Mohun Bagan Super Giants celebrates a goal during the Indian Super League (ISL) 2023-24 season, match 79 played between Mohun Bagan Super Giants and Hyderabad FC held at the Vivekananda Yuba Bharati Krirangan, Kolkata on February 10, 2024 | Photo Credit: Focus Sports/ISL

Mohun Bagan Super Giant secured its first win after four games in the Indian Super League (ISL) 2023-24 as it registered a comfortable 2-0 win over Hyderabad FC at the Salt Lake Stadium in Kolkata on Saturday.

First-half strikes by Anirudh Thapa and Jason Cummings ensured three points for the Mariners from this clash.

AS IT HAPPENED: Mohun Bagan SG vs Hyderabad FC highlights

Both Thapa and Cummings were notable high-profile acquisitions made by the Mohun Bagan Super Giant ahead of the season.

However, they hadn’t hit the ground running yet. Cummings had a handful of strikes to his name, but the expectations of impact that the team would have expected from a footballer experienced in playing in the FIFA World Cup was arguably missing so far. Similarly, Thapa had recorded reasonable playing time from the defensive midfield but lacked any goal contribution in the ISL 2023-24.

Thankfully for Antonio Lopez Habas, these boxes were ticked in this encounter. In the 12th minute, the former Chennaiyin FC star displayed impressive positional awareness to get to the end of a corner kick, squabbling against the Hyderabad FC defenders to net the ball in and get an early lead for the home side.

As is the routine often, Manvir used his burst of pace to beat the opposition’s backline and get into a pocket of promising space in the final third. He then laid up a fairly straightforward low ball for Cummings, who didn’t blink twice before depositing it past Gurmeet Singh to double his team’s lead and then broke into his trademark celebration, much to the joy of the supporters on the stands.

Hyderabad FC and its inexperienced unit didn’t have much to do in the second essay of the game. Joseph Sunny and Amon Lepcha tested their luck in different phases of the half from outside of the 18-yard box. However, none of those shots were troublesome for Vishal Kaith, with only four of their efforts throughout the game landing on target.