ISL 2020-21: FC Goa held to 2-2 draw by resilient Mumbai City
ISL 2020-21: Mumbai City FC came back from behind twice to earn a 2-2 draw against FC Goa in the first leg of their Indian Super League semifinal clash.
Published : Mar 05, 2021 22:36 IST
FC Goa and Mumbai City FC played out an exciting 2-2 draw in the first leg of their Indian Super League (ISL 2020-21) semifinal fixture at the Fatorda Stadium in Margao on Friday.
Sergio Lobera's Mumbai came from behind twice to head into the next leg of the ISL playoffs on level terms with Goa.
Saviour Gama gave FC Goa the lead for the second time on the night via a brilliant solo effort. He got the ball on the left flank, sprinted towards goal and took a shot from the edge of the box to beat Amrinder Singh.
FC Goa coach Juan Ferrando has had among the most challenging start to life in India. In this episode of The Full Time Show, he speaks to Aashin Prasad about his maiden season in ISL, quarantine and player management, coaching style, contentious refereeing and his takeaways from the season. |
However, just three minutes later, Mourtada Fall equalised for Mumbai City FC when he executed a brilliant header, off an Ahmed Jahouh cross, and slotted the ball past a hapless Dheeraj Singh.
Later, Fall escaped a straight red card after putting in a dangerous two-footed tackle on Princeton Rebello during the second half stoppage-time, much to FC Goa manager Juan Ferrando's fury.
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For most parts of the match, the Gaurs and Islanders weren't able to find the winning edge after wasting several chances.
In the first half, Goa capitalised on the early pressure it applied on Mumbai with a goal in the 20th minute. Mandar Rao Dessai brought down Jorge Ortiz inside the box and the referee immediately pointed to the spot. Igor Angulo then converted the penalty to score his 14th goal of the season.
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Eighteen minutes later, MCFC equalised through Hugo Boumous, who came back from a four-game suspension, thanks to some sloppy defending from Goa. Jahouh took a quick free-kick and played it to Boumous, who took it forward and found the back of the net despite having several opposition players in front of him.
The Gaurs had two penalty claims denied in the opening 45 minutes, apart from some wastefulness in the final third, as they were held by the Islanders. The two sides will battle it out once again when they clash in the second leg on March 8 at the GMC Stadium in Bambolim.