Mumbai City FC completed the league double over defending ISL champion Bengaluru FC with a 2-0 victory thanks to goals from Modou Sogou and Amine Chermiti. The result keeps Mumbai on the fifth spot, two points behind fourth-placed Odisha FC, while Bengaluru is second.
Sougou got lucky with a vital first-half strike, tracking a ball floated from the back by Rowllin Borges towards the box. The Senegalese striker saw goalkeeper Gurpreet Singh Sandhu coming off the goal line but the rush out was not fast enough. Thus, Sougou attempted a hopeful header which looped into an empty net to bring up a 1-0 lead for his side.
Mumbai's second goal seemed like a gift from the visiting outfit. Defender Harmanjot Khabra attempted a controlled header towards the goalkeeper, but instead, the ball bounced within range of Chermiti for the Tunisian to trap and sweep home past Gurpreet.
Later Sougou set up his teammate with a swift pass across the goalmouth; Chermiti dived to deflect in with his leg but arrived late in the goal area.
Amrinder Singh under the Mumbai goal faced anxious moments early in the game. First, Ashique Kuruniyan found space on the right flank to get past two defenders to create space for a left-footed shot. Later, Chhetri got first look at goal off a corner-kick -- the tap-in floated wide of the target.
Bengaluru brought in speedy winger Udanta Singh and noted playmaker Eugeneson Lyngdoh into the game via second half substitutions, but the buzz was missing on the pitch. The defence showed effects of anxiety, the midfield was overrun and the forwards did not test Amrinder the way his counterpart Gurpreet was stretched.
Face-offs involving players from both sides were frequent, as were shows of frustration after being fouled. Yellow cards were flashed by a busy referee, fortunately, no yellow card turned to red amidst the flare-ups in the middle.
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