Mumbai City FC in five-star performance

Mumbai City FC – 5 (Greg Stewart 10’, Lalianzuala Chhangte 18’, Mehtab Singh 36’ Ahmed Jahouh
63’(P) Vikram Pratap Singh 90+2)

Rajasthan United FC- 1 (Gyanmar Nikum 67’)
Kolkata, Monday, August 29, 2022:

Mumbai City FC (MCFC) unleashed a champagne
performance in the 131st IndianOil Durand Cup, with a 5-1 win over Rajasthan United FC (RUFC), in a
Group B game at the Kishore Bharati Krirangan (KBK), here in the southern part of the city. Greg
Stewart opened the scoring for the Islanders in the 10th minute, with Lallianzuala Chhangte doubling the
advantage in the 18th and Mehtab Singh adding a third in the 35th, to put the issue beyond RUFC in the
first half itself. In the second, Ahmed Jahouh converted a penalty won by substitute Vikram Pratap Singh,
before Gyanmar Nikum got one back for RUFC with his second of the tournament. Vikram Pratap then
nailed one in himself the second minute of stoppage time to make it a five-star performance from the
Islanders.
All 47 games of the 131st IndianOil Durand Cup are being telecast LIVE on Sports18 1 SD
& HD and Sports18 Khel as well as live-steamed on the Over the Top (OTT) platform
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RUFC looked a far cry from the spirited side of their first two games with MCFC snuffing out whatever
challenge they would have provided in the first half itself, with some eye-catching football.
The first MCFC goal gave an indication of things to come when Argentine Pereyra Diaz, with a lovely
body turn in midfield, found Scotsman Greg Stewart’s run in between two defenders, who made no
mistake with a clinical finish. This was after RUFC had got the game’s first corner for themselves in the
very first minute itself.
MCFC continued to attack and Lallianzuala Chhangte, who had had a few runs before that, received the
ball on the right flank and cut inside, to let go a left-footer which took an unfortunate deflection from
RUFC defender Aidar Mambetaliev’s head to wrong foot keeper Niraj Kumar and go in.
In the 35th minute, Greg Stewart took a free-kick from the right, floating the ball across goal. Mehtab
Singh, who had come in from his position in deep defence, met it on the half-volley and found the back
of the net. The game was well beyond RUFC now and with the kind of form MCFC were in.
To their credit however, they came out with positive intent in the second-half and did create more chances
to score than they did in the first.
MCFC were also not letting up and after Vikram Pratap was deemed to have been brought down in the
box, Jahouh converted from the spot calmly to make it 4-0 for the Islanders in the 63rd minute.
RUFC then got a consolation goal from 17-year-old Gyanmar Nikum, who had been brought on a few
minutes back. The scorer of the winning goal against ATK Mohun Bagan, got the ball on the edge of the
box on the right and burst through two defenders to curl it with his left into the back of the MCFC net.
Not to be left behind in the goal feast, Vikram Pratap got at the end of a through from midfield by Stewart,
to slot in a fifth for MCFC in the second minute of stoppage time.

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