Hello and Welcome to the highlights of the Indian Super League (ISL) match between Mumbai City F.C. and Kerala Blasters at the Mumbai Football Arena. This was Shivansh Gupta bringing you the live commentary.
Thank you so much for joining us. Until tomorrow, it's goodbye. CIAO!
Well, what an entertaining draw that was! End to end stuff, great goalkeeping, this game had it all. That's all we have for you today.
Mumbai is yet to find a win on home turf.
That's three draws on the bounce for Mumbai and three draws in last four matches for Kerala.
An impressive draw comes to an end as Mumbai and Kerala share the spoils.
FULL-TIME!! THE FINAL WHISTLE GOES AND THAT'S THAT!!!
90+3' IS THAT THE GAME SAVING TACKLE? Sougou looked like he had a clear path to goal, but he is halted in his tracks but a brilliantly-time tackle from Rakip.
Raju G is receiving some treatment he has to walk off! The blood has dripped onto the jersey of Raju and he has to get a change before he can come back on. Kerala might have to play with 10 men for the remainder of the match.
3 minutes have been added on!
88' SAVED, BUT JUST! Substitute Narzary receives a great cross from the left flank by Cindoncha. He takes the first touch off his chest and has enough time to take a shot. But he miscues it and drags to the keeper, who fumbles but saves it eventually.
84' FREE-KICK FOR KERALA! Borges brings down Messi! He's already on a yellow is, Rowllin and is lucky to survive a booking here. Cindocha with a loopy ball inside the box, Messi gets up early and beats Pratik to the header only to hit it wide.
80' SUBSTITUTION: Narzary. H- IN| Prasanth- OUT
79' SUBSTITUTION: F. Angoue- IN| Chermiti- OUT ( The goalscorer is subbed off)
77' GOOALL AND MUMBAI DRAWS BACK LEVEL! That was quick! Golui with a cross to Sougou, who heads it straight at the feet of Chermiti right outside the goal line. Chermiti's first time shot is deflected back to him by Rehenesh and this time, Chermiti makes no mistake!
75' GOOOALLL!! It's Messi! It had to be! It was coming all night. Jackon plays a little one-two with Samuel. Jessel then supplies a great ball in and Messi with left-footed shot on the first time beats Amrinder. It wasn't the cleanest of contacts, but still manages to beat the keeper at the near post.
74' WASTEFUL FROM MUMBAI AGAIN! Bipin Singh, with his lightening quick pace, does extremely well to out-run Rakip in the flank. He puts a good ball to Larbi, who makes a mess of it by playing it back.
73' Samuel has a crack from the centre but the shot is blocked! Jessel tries to get the ball but Chermiti tracks back brilliantly well with a pin-point sliding tackle to clear the ball off danger. The long throw-in collected easily by Amrinder. A poor throw from the keeper means Cidoncha has a chance to cross the ball in from the right, but the low cross is hit away by Pratik.
67' UP AND OVER! Messi decides to take the shot from the corner of the box on the left. He is unable to curl it enough as the ball is hit long.
63' SUBSTITUTION. Samuel- IN | Sahal- OUT
62' REHENESH TO THE RESCUE AGAIN! It's a one-on-one between Bipin and the keeper but the latter gets down just on time to make the save. The move started with Borges playing a lovely through ball to Bipin.
60' LARBI LAUNCHES BUT JUST OVER! After consecutive deliveries from the left flank inside the box, the second clearing header falls straight to Larbi. He takes a whip at it from just outside the box, but the bullet of a shot just is just over.
59'MASSIVE TACKLE! Bipin Singh tries to find Sougou from the left, but the ball is intercepted and cleared away by Raju before the Mumbai striker could get to the ball.
56' It's all happening here! Kerala playing a high line, enticing Mumbai to continue playing the long ball. Substitute Bipin Singh was in business, looking to collect the long ball. But once again, the sweeper-keeper Rehenesh was quick off his mark to clear the ball. The ball fell directly to Rowllin, the midfielder, who hits it from centre line, just like Wayne Rooney. The ball just fall over the cross over on to the top netting.
SUBSTITUTION for MCFC: Bipin Singh- IN | Raynier- OUT
51' BLOCKED! Messi Bouli gets the ball just outside the box. He tries to smash it from there, but the shot is blocked by Pratik and ball comes off the defender's foot to scramble to the keeper.
50' Rehenesh, once again, comes off his spot to clear the ball away. Mumbai, sticking to its ploy of playing long balls from the back. This time, Rehenesh had to come a long way to clear it off his legs.
48' Chance gone begging for Mumbai! Chermiti has the ball in the right before being met by a challenge from Drobarov. Chermiti, however, overpowers the defender and goes past him. He tries to look for Raynier, however, the supply is too heavy as it flies over the intended target.
46' FREE-KICK FOR KERALA! Messi is held back with firm force from Pratik and he referee awards a free-kick. Cindocha plays it short to Samad, who loses the ball. Machado latches on to the ball and he runs up front all by himself. A great sliding tackle from the Kerala defender stops Machado in his tracks and the ball is played back to Bouli. He passes it back but the ball is cleared away.
Mumbai City gets us off!
IT' TIME FOR THE SECOND HALF!!
Then, Mumbai began crawling it way back into the game and it was Sougou who was the busiest. A couple of easy chances missed from Larbi meant both the teams went into the break without getting on to the scoresheet. Not to forget, some really important saves from both keepers also played a major role in keeping the scores at 0-0.
While Messi made piercing runs in the left flank, Rakip and Carneiro continued to supply good balls in. But the Mumbai defence in Sarthak, Grgic and Bose had no problems in fending the danger away.
An entertaining first half comes to an end. What an absorbing phase of football that was! Kerala Blasters began attacking from the onset and didn't really let the host settle in and find its rhythm.
WHISTLE FROM THE REFEREE AND THAT'S HALF-TIME!
45+1' Sarthak runs in from the back in the right flank after being supplied by Sougou, but can't lift the cross enough and a throw-in for Mumbai. Kerala continues to press on the throw-in and the ball is played all the way back to the Mumbai keeper! Amrinder kicks in back in.
ONLY 1 MINUTE HAS BEEN ADDED ON
44' YELLOW FOR ROWLLIN! Late tackle from behind on Sergio Cindocha, while attempting to stop the latter from turning. Sloppy, indeed!
42' SAVE! Once again, Sougou has a shot on goal from the right corner of the box. But he fails to get a clean connection, in free space, from his left-foot and TP makes a comfortable save in the end. Raju Gaikwad does just enough to put Sougou off with an attempted diving block.
40' OVER THE GOAL! Subhasish Bose with a great ball in from the corner but Chermiti is unable to keep it in and heads the ball up and over the keeper.
Mumbai working its way in, possession count goes up to 47 per cent.
37' LARBI HEADS IT OVER FROM POINT-BLANK RANGE! The diagonal ball in from the left back, once again, frees up Sougou. He is way clear of the three defenders. He supplies a loopy ball inside the box. Rehenesh's jump is insufficient to get to the ball and Larbi was right behind him. But it was too high for Larbi as he is unable to keep it in.
35' TP WITH A SAVE! Borge with a brilliant ball in allowing Sougou enough space from close range. He runs inside the box and looks for Larbi, who was all by himself. But Rehenesh intercepts the pass with a dive and parries it away. What a crucial save
33' HOW DID THAT NOT GO IN? Carneiro with a sumptuous lob from the centre inside the box. All Seityasen had to do was get a touch on the ball, right in front of the keeper. But his moment of indecisiveness mean Amrinder Singh has time to gather the ball.
31' Sougou with a flat ball inside the box from the right flank to Larbi, passe it back. Subhasish crosses it on the first touch but the ball is cleared away.
30' CORNER! Once again it's Messi who makes a threating run from the left. But the ball is cleared away by Golui. The ball is supplied in from the left but cleared away by the Mumbai defence.
28' Grgic showing why he is so important to the team. Another clearing header inside the box to deny Messi any shot at goal .
25' SAVE! Messi Bouli with an overhead kick near the penalty spot and Amrinder Singh dives to his right for a save from point blank range. Corner is taken poorly, once again. Messi get a deep cross from the left, he takes a first touch by kicking the ball up before latching on to it with an overhead kick. Amrinder make hi 18th save of the season.
25' YELLOW CARD! Raynier pulls back Singh in his tracks and is punished for it.
21' Raju pulls Sougou down, while he was in his tracks in the right wing and that's a free-kick for the home team.
20' Raynier is brought brought down by Sergio Cindocha right outside the Blasters' box, but no bookings made.
18' YELLOW CARD FOR DROBAROV! He brings down with a late sliding tackle from behind on Chermiti, who holds on to his shin instantly. The referee lets the play continue for a few more seconds before pullimg out his yellow card.
17' Nervy! A back pass to Amrinder Singh and Messi Bouli attacks instantly, forcing a rushed clearance from the keeper.
So far, Kerala has enjoyed 61 per cent of the possession.
13' On the other hand, Chermiti has a chance to slot the ball from inside the box after Machado makes a late run and puts a cross in, but Raju Gaikwad of Kerala does well to tower over Chermiti to head the ball away.
12' Inviting but over Messi Bouli misses a header inside the box, from a long throw in from Raju, and there was a second chance for Seityasen Singh. But he makes a mess of it as he rifles the ball way over the crossbar.
11' Long ball in from the centre of the field looking for Modou Sougou, but Kerala keeper Rehenesh charges out and collects the ball safely.
Yes, Kerala has made a lot of advances already, but Mumbai isn't looking panicky at the back.
10' Messi on the charge, but cleared away! Messi Bouli overpowers Subhasish Bose in the left flank and cuts in sharply inside the box. But Bose is up to the task as he run back in to clear the ball.
8' Good positive start from Kerala. Rakip threads a ball in the right to Prasanth, whose cross bends away from the box and over the goal post for a goal kick.
7' Bouli frees up Rakip in the right flank, who puts a decent ball in the box. But Sarthak heads it away from danger. The ball falls to another full-back Jessel Carneiro who whips in another cross, but the ball is cleared once again from inside the box.
6' Throw in for Mumbai! A bit of a battle at the back in Kerala's half. Rakip fends away the danger from Larbi by kicking the ball into the Mumbai midfielder.
3' Free-kick for Kerala! Messi Bouli of KB is brought down! Jesel Carneiro goes for goal from long range and the ball is way wide of goal. No trouble for Amrinder Singh, the Mumbai goalkeeper there.
2' Corner for Kerala! Mato Grgic cleans up at the back with a header past the back line and Kerala has it first corner. Poor corner, it was a short one and Mumbai applies the pressure, forcing Kerala to go further back.
KICK-OFF!!
Kerala with the first kick on the ball and the match is underway!
The players have made their way out to the pitch and have lined up for the national anthem!
Right the, it's time for the action to begin.
The starting XIs of the night are here:
Mumbai City FC: Amrinder Singh (GK), Subhasish Bose, Pratik Chaudhari, Mato Grgic, Sarthak, Golui, Rowllin Borges, Raynier Fernandes, Paulo Machado (C), Mohamed Larbi, Amine Chermiti, Modou Sougou
- MCFC bench: Ravi Kumar (GK), Bidyananda Singh, Bipin Singh, Mohammed Rafique, Serge Kevyn, Sauvik Chakrabarti, Valpuia.
Kerala Blasters: TP Rehenesh (GK), Mohamad Rakip, Raju Gaikwad, Jessel Carneiro, Vlatko Drobarov, Jeakson Singh, Sahal Abdul Samad, Prasanth Karuthadathkuni, Seityasen Singh, Sergio Cidoncha (C), Messi Bouli
- KBFC bench: Bilal Husain Khan (GK), Darren Caldeira, Halicharan Narzary, Samuel Lalmuanpuia, Abdul Hakku, Lalruatthara, Pritam Singh.
Let's have a look at how both the teams shape up for the tonight' encounter!
Form Guide:
- Mumbai City FC- The Islanders returns to home turf on the back off two consecutive draws against NorthEast United FC and ATK respectively. Both matches ended with 2-2 scoreline.
- Kerala Blasters- Kerala, on the other hand, has only bagged one point from its last two games. It lost 0-1 to Bengaluru FC before playing out a 2-2 draw against FC Goa.
Position in table: ( W-win, D-draw, L-loss)
- Mumbai City FC- Mumbai is currently 7th in the points table with six point from six games. (W1,D3,L2)
- Kerala Blasters- The Blasters is right below at 8th with five point from six games. (W1,D2,L3)
STAT ATTACK: ( Mumbai City Player | Kerala Blasters Player )
Most Goals: Amine Chermiti- 3 goals (5th in tally) | Barthomolew Ogbeche- 2 goals (Tied 14th)
Assists: Mohamed Larbi- 3 assist (Tied at top) | No KBFC player has more than one assist so far
Clean Sheets: Amrinder Singh- 3(Tied 3rd) | T.P. Rehenesh- 1 (Tied 7th)
Saves: Amrinder Singh- 17(Tied 3rd) | T.P. Rehenesh- 8 (11th)
While we wait for the match to begin, you can go through what to look forward to and players to watch out from this match.
MATCH PREVIEW:
Mumbai City FC will be eyeing its first home win of the season when it takes on Kerala Blasters in an Indian Super League (ISL) game on Thursday.
The Jorge Costa-managed team has played two games this season at home in the Mumbai Football Arena, but suffered defeat on both the occasions.
First, it was Odisha FC which stunned Mumbai with a 4-2 win and later, FC Goa defeated the host by a similar margin on November 7.
Moreover, this would be Mumbai’s first home game after it was announced that the City Football Group has acquired majority of shares in the team.
Both Mumbai and Kerala are placed in the lower half of the points table and a win would help them improve their position.
Mumbai has played six games so far, of which it has won one, drawn three and lost two.
Kerala has also played six, won one, drawn two and lost three.
The host will have its hopes pinned on Tunisian forward Amine Chermiti, who is the side's leading goal scorer so far this season with three goals to his name.
READ: ISL approaches AIFF to improve quality of refereeing in league
The Kerala defence will have a tough time if Chermiti fires on all cylinders.
However, all eyes will be on another key player for Mumbai, Modou Sougou, who hasn’t had the best time.
One good game is enough for Sougou to prove his mettle and he will be hoping that the game against Kerala would be the one.
Mumbai has equally strong midfielders comprising Paulo Machoda, Raynier Fernades, Rowlin Borges, Bipin Singh, Mohamed Larbi, Mohammed Asif and Mohammed Rafique and they will have to be on their toes to keep the Kerala forwards at bay. However, its mid-fielder Diego Carlos is out with an injury.
Mumbai's line will be manned by Pratik Chaudhari, Mato Grgic and Sauvik Chakrabarti.
Mumbai’s defence is definitely an area of concern and it would have to put a strong show if it wants to record its second win of the season.
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The role of its custodian Amrinder Singh, who has so far made 17 saves in the tournament, will also be of utmost importance. He would expect to keep a clean sheet.
Mumbai coach Costa admitted that the team is under pressure to deliver victories.
“We are playing under pressure because we need points. We need to be close to the part (in the table) we want and I think that we deserve it,” Costa said.
Speaking about the team’s performance, Costa said, “It is always a problem when you lose points because of an individual’s mistake. However, the good thing we must take away from the last two games is that we are playing as a team and we are playing good.”
For Kerala, its coach would want forward Bartholomew Ogbeche and Messi Bouli to play to their potential.
The side's midfielders and defenders also will have to play to their potential if Mumbai has to stopped in its own den.
Kerala Blasters continues to be without the services of Gianni Zuiverloon in defence, Mario Arques and Moustapha Gning in midfield.
Their replacements in the starting line-up have done reasonably well, especially the calm and composed Jeakson Singh.
WHERE TO WATCH:
You can watch the live telecast of this Indian Super League (ISL) match on the Star Sports network. You can also watch the live stream on Hotstar.
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