Margaon: Mumbai City FC were humiliated by hosts FC Goa in a record defeat (0-7) which witnessed some of the best and worst individual performances of the Indian Super League (ISL) this season.
Here are the five things that led to the demolition of the team from the Maximum City.
Wasted opportunities
The fans who travelled all the way to Margao to catch their favourite team were let down by Nicolas Anelka’s boys. They wasted several chances while counter-attacking, including the offside that stopped Sunil Chhetri from finding the net in the 14th minute.
Later, Anelka freed Keegan Pereira with a superb through ball on the break, which put him in a one-on-one position with the custodian. But the Indian could not manage to get his footing right. Hence, the attackers failed to capitalise on such opportunities.
A night to forget for the central defenders
Mumbai showed lack of discipline and poor positioning in defence. Individual mistakes cost Mumbai the game, with a disappointing performance from one of the best back fours in the league. Pavel Cmovs and Darren O’Dea started the game as one of the best centre-back pairs in the ISL, but failed to contain Dudu Omagbemi and Thongkoisep Haokip. The centre halves gave the ball away cheaply, and looked fragile throughout the game.
Catastrophe on the flanks
The wingbacks were mercilessly humiliated by Zico’s frontmen. Right-back Ashutosh Mehta was responsible for the first goal that was conceded. He was caught ball-watching as he let Dudu breeze past him and later tackled him from behind to rectify his mistake, which would have been given as a penalty anyways. Left-back Lalchhuanmawia Fanai tried to play Dudu offside, but got it all wrong as the Nigerian got free and slotted the ball into the bottom corner.
Backfire of tactical shift
Midfielder Sampath Kuttymani was brought on for left-back Lacchuanmawia in order to rejuvenate the team’s attack and help Mumbai claw their way back into the game. But this change had disastrous results. Keegan Periera drifted into the fullback position, but found it difficult to deal with Romeo’s pace. Kuttymani did not track back and was invisible on the field, making no significant contributions to the team’s attack. Ultimately, the Blue Devils ended up conceding five goals in the second half.
Absence of Oscar Bruzon
Earlier this month, Mumbai City FC decided to part ways with assistant coach Oscar Burzon due to differences in football philosophy. The Spaniard’s presence on the sidelines was surely missed, as the team failed to show strength of character and aggressiveness, attributes which Burzon wanted to instil in the side’s attitude.
