Odisha FC moved to fourth position in the Indian Super League (ISL) as it beat Mumbai City 2-0 on Saturday at the Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar.
After an eventful first half, Odisha went ahead in the 47th minute when Aridane Santana finished off from a Xisco Hernandez pass. The pair combined once again in the 74th minute when Santana turned provider laying it off for Xisco to rifle a volley home to make it 2-0.
Here are the talking points from Odisha's impressive win in Bhubaneswar.
Odisha's home dominance is telling
Ever since Odisha FC moved to its original home ground in Bhubaneswar, it has put in dominant performances winning three on the trot at the Kalinga Stadium. On Saturday, Josep Gambau's men were superior to Mumbai City in every department.
The host won nine corner kicks in the opening half with its forwards Nandhakumar Sekar, Jerry Mawihmingthanga buzzing around menacingly while the duo of Xisco Hernandez and Aridane Santana moved into dangerous positions. The goals seemed inevitable and Aridane put Odisha ahead two minutes into the second half. There was no drop in intensity after Xisco Hernandez doubled the lead in the 74th minute as substitute Lalchhuanmawia Fanai came close to scoring the third goal in the final minutes.
The double pivot of Vinit Rai and Marcos Tebar worked seamlessly as the duo finished with a pas success rate of 88% and 87% respectively.
Mumbai defence can't weather the storm
Whether it was the patchy turf at the Kalinga Stadium or the disappointment of the 0-2 home loss against ATK, Mumbai City FC never looked settled against Odisha FC. Sarthak Golui, who was drafted into the playing XI for Sauvik Chakrabarti, offered Jerry too much time and space on the ball while Subhasish Bose was often beaten for pace by Nandhakumar Sekar and was completely out of the picture when Aridane prodded home the opener into an unguarded net at the far post.
The visitor's backline made a combined total 41 clearances throughout the game which tells the amount of time and space Odisha was offered in the attacking half. Serge Kevyn was the worst performer on the pitch for the visitor as he committed three fouls and failed to win any of his tackles. The Gabonese finished the game with a yellow card for a petulant foul on Xisco.
Odisha's defensive line keeps Mumbai at bay
The second half display from Mumbai City left Jorge Costa, suspended from the dugout, fuming in the VIP box as his team managed two tame shots on the goal. However, the Odisha defence responded whenever it was called into action.
Moudou Sougou flashed a dangerous cross across the face of the goal in the closing stages of the first half where Narayan Das did well to close out Armine Chermiti. Carlos Delgado was quick to take Sougou off the ball after the forward beat Sarangi on the flanks. Goalkeeper Francisco Dorronsoro used all his experience to deny Chermiti and Sougou in quick succession as Mumbai looked like scoring in the 44th minute.
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