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Mumbai City FC travelled to Goa with hopes of getting their three-match winning streak back after a recent dip in form. FC Goa too were looking for three points to move up the table and get themselves back on track after a recent slump. Goa were placed fourth on the points table with 19 points, whereas Mumbai were seventh with 14 points.
The match started off on a bright note with both the teams attacking down the flanks and making their intentions clears about trying to get three points from the tie. Both the teams also had an air of no no-nonsense as both sets of defenders went in hard from the early stages of the game.
A quick throw-in saw Manuel give it to Coro who jinxed past a couple of defenders and played it to Mandar whose shot was fisted away by Amrinder only to see Coro burry in the rebound to make it 1-0 to Goa. The lead was short-lived as Everton Santos flicked in a Thiago Santos shot past Kattimani to level the scores for Mumbai. A freakish blunder helped Goa take the lead in the closing stages of the first half.
The second half began with a bang with Arminder being forced to make some crucial saves, a Red Card a Penalty the second half started with all the ingredients of a full-fledged entertainer.
The game ended as a 7goal thriller, with Mumbai eventually snatching the victory with a 4-3 scoreline.
On that note, let's take a look at the player ratings of today’s game
FC Goa
Laxmikant Kattimani (5.5/10): Laxmikant saw the ball go past him 4 times today and he really couldn’t have done much. But he could have been better at two occasions where his rebound fell to a Mumbai player which then helped Mumbai score from those situations. Kattimani needs to up his game if Goa are to win or reach the Knockout stages of the league this season.
Seriton Fernandes (4.5/10): Seriton started putting in the hard tackles right from the word go, and eventually paid the price as he was booked twice and given the marching orders which turned the tides for Goa and helped Mumbai snatch a victory.
Sergio Juste (5.5/10): Sergio seemed to have problems adjusting with his centre-back partner Mohamed Ali, lack of communication between the two of them allowed the likes of Thiago and Balwant lot of spaces to run into and cause havoc in the Goa defence.
Mohamed Ali (5.5/10): Ali was guilty of bringing down Everton Santos inside the box to award Mumbai the penalty which eventually helped Mumbai heave back into the game. Otherwise, Ali did put in some crucial ball winning tackles and clearances.
Narayan Das (6.5/10): Narayan was good today, he did a good job to keep Sanju in check and helped Mandar in attack. He also put a lot of pressure on Sanju which helped Mandar move forward freely.
Edu Bedia (6.5/10): Edu Bedia had a quiet game of sorts today. He was ever present today in the midfield but somehow was a shade below his usual self. He also seemed to have problems in keeping the likes of Emana and Everton Santos in check.
Ahmed Jahouh (7/10): Jahouh was brilliant in the first half, but after Goa was reduced to 10 men Jahouh somehow lost his touch and was overrun by the likes of Emana Everton and Thiago Santos. Jahouh though did put in some important blocks and clearances to help out his defenders.
Brandon Fernandes (6/10): Brandon was a shade below his usual self. He seemed to go down to ground easily and had problems getting past his shadow Sahil Travora. Brandon also didn’t track back properly. Brandon also didn’t see much of the ball today.
Manuel Lanzarote (8/10): Lanzarote had another good game for Goa. He scored one and created another for Coro. He saw an effort of his fisted away by Amrinder in what was a world class save.
Mandar Rao Desai (7.5/10): Mandar was brilliant on the left wing for Goa. He was the main creator of the first and second goals and was really hardworking down the left flank. He also dropped deep and helped out Narayan in defence.
Ferran Corominas (9/10): Corro was back to his usual self in today’s game. As he scored two beautiful goals. During the first goal, he jinxed his way past three Mumbai defenders before passing the ball to Mandar whose shot fell kindly for Coro and he didn’t make any mistake in converting the chance. The second goal though was pure class. The run that Coro made and the first touch and chip to beat Amrinder was just world class, especially the spin and bounce that he put in the ball during the chip was a testament of the class that Coro possesses.
Mumbai City FC
Amrinder Singh (7/10): Amrinder committed a howler during the second goal he conceded, but right from the start of the second half Amrinder seemed to be a different person, as he pulled off two stunning saves to keep Mumbai in the game. The save from a Manuel Lanzarote curler can easily be a contender for the save of the season. Amrinder had a big role to play in ensuring that Mumbai equalised in the second half.
Mehrajuddin Wadoo (5.5/10): Wadoo’s distribution and anticipation was poor today, but Wadoo was an ever-present figure in Mumbai defence, and he put in some crunching tackles, to keep the Goa forwards at bay.
Gerson Vieira (6.5/10): Gearson was the leader in defence for Mumbai, as he made sure that his defensive line was set up properly. Gearson also had the primary responsibility of keeping a check on Coro something which he really couldn’t accomplish.
Marcio Rozario (6/10): Rozario was ball watching during the first goal Mumbai conceded, and also was late to react to the third goal. All in all, Rozario had a poor game. His tackles were also not very effective.
Sanju Pradhan (6/10): Sanju was the culprit number 1 for the second goal Mumbai conceded, as his back pass was collected by Mandar, which resulted in the second goal for Goa. Sanju also didn’t venture forward much too.
Achille Emana (8.5/10): Scored the equaliser for Mumbai from the penalty spot. Emana was a big presence in the middle of the park. He helped Mumbai win a lot of balls and initiated a lot of attacks.
Zakeer Mundampara (6/10): Zakeer was a shadow today, he did put in some crucial tackles but his passes and anticipation were poor. He was completely overrun by the likes of Md. Jahouh and Edu Bedia.
Sahil Travora (6/10): Sahil Travora did the job of getting into the heads of the Goa players. He frustrated Brandon all evening with his constant shirt pulling and jabbering. Sahil though didn’t have the best of days in terms of passing and holding up play and build up.
Thiago Santos (9/10): Thiago was the best player for Mumbai today without a doubt. He was a pure livewire and after Goa was reduced to 10 men he was the player who troubled the Goa defence the most. Thiago had a direct or indirect involvement in all the four goals that Mumbai scored. He was rightly adjusted as the Man of the match.
Everton Santos (8.5/10): Scored a lucky goal from a Thiago shot which hit his thigh and went in. Everton did a good job to hold the ball in midfield and build up attacks for Mumbai. He also covered a lot of ground and helped out Zakeer and Sahil in the midfield to keep a check on Jahouh and Edu Bedia.
Balwant Singh (8/10): Balwant was a menace up front for Mumbai, he didn’t give the Goa defenders a moments peace, as he chased down every ball and closed down the passing channels high up the pitch. He was also rewarded with a goal.
