Mumbai City 2-1 Hyderabad FC: 3 reasons why the Islanders posted their first home victory | ISL 2019-20

Mumbai City FC edged past Hyderabad FC 2-1 in a keenly contested Indian Super League encounter at the Mumbai Football Arena. The victory allowed the hosts to notch their first positive result of the campaign at home.

The Islanders immediately nudge ahead when Modou Sougou finished off a flowing move in the 6th minute, after some brilliant work by Diego Carlos. Though the home side kept pushing for another goal in the opening 45 minutes, they were unable to breach the visitors’ rear-guard.

In the 67th minute though, Mumbai’s endeavours were impeded majorly when Sarthak Golui was shown his second yellow card. However, it was Mumbai who got the all-important second goal in the contest as Sougou nonchalantly lifted his attempt over the keeper with 12 minutes remaining.

Even though Hyderabad pulled a goal back in the 81st minute, they weren’t able to make the most of their dominance, thereby enabling the hosts to emerge with all three points.

Here is a look at the three reasons that allowed the Islanders to post a victory.

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#3 Diego Carlos runs riot on the flanks

Diego Carlos played a vital role in the win (Image: ISL)

For the game against Hyderabad, Jorge Costa had plenty of selection headaches, owing to the number of injuries that had engulfed the club lately. Subsequently, the Portuguese was forced to shuffle his pack with the attacking onus falling on the likes of Carlos, Serge Kevyn and Sougou.

Carlos, in particular, was entrusted with the responsibility of stretching the play as the Islanders looked to notch their first win on their home patch and the Brazilian delivered emphatically, producing a scintillating performance on the left wing.

From the outset, the winger looked a bundle of energy as he tormented Ashish Rai. He got goal-side of the Indian on numerous occasions and was also smart enough to outwit his marker with clever positioning.

Most importantly though, Carlos displayed the requisite composure to pick out the right pass when accorded time and space in the final third.

After bamboozling Ashish in the 6th minute, the Brazilian found himself on the left edge of the penalty box. He looked up, saw the run of Sougou and laid the ball on a platter for the Senegalese to apply the finishing touches.

Apart from his assist, Carlos also tracked back diligently, meaning that he never isolated Subhasish Bose against the likes of Marcelinho.

Thus, through the course of the 90 minutes, the Brazilian had turned in arguably his most complete performance of the campaign. And, unsurprisingly, it earned the Islanders their first victory at the Mumbai Football Arena.

#2 Hyderabad fail to capitalize on their numerical superiority

Despite being a man up, Hyderabad couldn't find an equaliser. (Image: ISL)

The visitors began the game extremely tentatively, although they enjoyed quite a bit of possession. Subsequently, that allowed Mumbai to surge into the ascendancy and impose their identity on the game.

The second half also started off in a similar vein, although the complexion of the contest was altered significantly in the 67th minute. After Marcelinho got the better of Sarthak Golui on the left flank, the latter threw out a stray arm to block the Brazilian’s path. The Hyderabad midfielder took an almighty tumble, albeit slightly theatrically as the referee issued Sarthak his marching orders.

Post the sending off, the visitors pushed and probed incessantly. However, for all their dominance in the final quarter of the match, they weren’t able to dent the Islanders’ charge considerably, meaning that the 10-men of Mumbai City held on to all three points.

Through that period, Hyderabad were guilty of missing several good opportunities. Marcelinho was uncharacteristically wasteful whereas Amrinder Singh also came up with a couple of crucial saves.

However, their clearest opportunity surfaced in second-half stoppage time when Robin Singh had the goal at his mercy. Yet, the Indian somehow spooned his effort over the bar as Mumbai heaved a sigh of relief.

Even before the second period, the away side had spurned a couple of presentable chances, with Bobo most notably heading over from inside the 6-yard-box.

And, though they made the net ripple eventually, it acted merely as a consolation rather than as a springboard for an unlikely comeback.

Throughout the 2019-20 term, there have been a plethora of issues to address for Phil Brown. And, while there weren’t any new ailments to worry about on Sunday, the recurring theme of Hyderabad simply not showing enough conviction in the attacking third reared its head again.

#1 Modou Sougou rises to the occasion, finally

Modou Sougou is finally off the mark this season. (Image: ISL)

Over the course of the current season, there have been plenty of question marks about Modou Sougou’s diminishing goal returns, especially considering the forward had failed to make the net bulge before Sunday.

However, against Hyderabad FC, the man from Senegal dug deep and unfurled a magnificent brace, thereby setting the platform for the Islanders’ triumph.

Operating on the right flank, Sougou picked and chose his moments to venture in-field to perfection. One such occurrence came about in the 6th minute when he evaded the attention of his marker to make himself available for Carlos’ cut-back. Subsequently, he slotted the ball into the back of the net to enable the hosts to surge ahead.

After the break, the Senegalese was slightly more subdued, in light of Sarthak’s sending off. Yet, that didn’t prevent him from popping up with what ultimately proved to be the winner.

For the second goal, the forward timed his run to perfection and dovetailed with Bidyananda Singh expertly, thereby creating a 1v1 situation against the goalkeeper. Thereafter, Sougou sized up his options and deftly dinked the ball over Kamaljit Singh.

Before the contest, there had been quite a few opinions about Sougou doing the rounds. Yet, when the situation demanded, akin to many a time before, the Senegalese morphed into the guardian angel Mumbai had been craving for.

And, while his goals certainly helped the Islanders win the battle, his upturn in form could also propel them to an ISL conquest.