It was an eventful day in the I-League wherein there was some shuffling in the bottom half of the table…
Mumbai FC 1-2 Indian Arrows
Mumbai FC were shocked at home by Indian Arrows on Saturday at the Shahu Maharaj Stadium, Kolhapur as the visitors picked up crucial points in their bid to avoid the drop.
Fresh from a away 3-2 victory over league leaders Salgaocar SC, the confidence levels in the Mumbai FC squad was high. However, they were in for a surprise as Indian Arrows bounced back from a defeat in the last round to Viva Kerala and put in a performance which deserved three points.
Lalrindika Ralte scored the opening goal in the 12th minute from a free-kick just outside the box to put his side in the lead. Thereafter, Mumbai FC did show some signs of coming back and were soon rewarded in the 35th minute.
Henry Ezeh’s shot was parried away by goalkeeper Jagroop Singh with Sampath Kuttymani picking up the pieces to score the equalizer.
After the break, it was a one sided affair as the Indian Arrows dominated the possession and found the winner eventually when Lalrindika’s shot deflected to find the back of the net. Interestingly, Jeje Lalpekhlua was awarded the man of the match over Lalrindika for his brace.
With this result, Mumbai FC continues to remain on the fifth spot with 32 points while Indian Arrows have moved up in the table to the 10th spot with 26 points.
Viva Kerala 0-0 ONGC
ONGC managed to come up with a decent performance against Viva Kerala to hold the home side to a goalless draw at the Jawahar Municipal Stadium, Kannur.
It was a game where individual brilliance shone the most as ONGC custodian Bilfang Narzary and Viva Kerala defender Charles Dzizah were a class apart.
While Dzizah didn’t allow the ONGC forwards to come up with an open shot on goal as Badmus Babtunde and Kailash Patil were stifled in the final third.
The home side was guilty of missing two opportunities which should have been put to rest. First it was the outstanding save from Narzary to deny Dzizah a goal in the second half from a cornerkick.
Anil Kumar, who has been the star of the Viva Kerala side this season, failed to find the back of the net with the goalkeeper at his mercy in the final minute of the game. Charles Dzizah won the man of the match award.
With only one game to play and having garnered a mere 23 points so far, ONGC have to face Mumbai FC in Kolhapur and anything less than a victory could spell doom for the club.
Viva Kerala are more or less secure with 26 points in their kitty and another two matches to play.