FC Goa 5-2 Mumbai City | 3 reasons why the Gaurs registered another home victory | ISL 2019-20
FC Goa and Mumbai City played out a seven-goal thriller at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Goa, with the scoreboard reading 5-2 in favour of the hosts at the end of 90 minutes.
In a strange happening, Goa conceded first, as they let Rowllin Borges open the account in the 18th minute. However, the Gaurs responded through Ferran Corominas two minutes later and stormed into a safe lead with back-to-back goals before half-time.
In contrast to the first 45 minutes, Mumbai City looked more regrouped and focused in attack and earned the reward through Bipin Singh three minutes short of the hour mark. But, the hosts didn't back off from their attacks and scored twice in the final 10 minutes to put the game to bed.
With the victory, FC Goa are now back on top of the ISL points table with 36 points from 17 games. Mumbai City, meanwhile, are four points away from Chennaiyin FC, still having three games to play this season.
Here, we look at three reasons why the Gaurs posted another high-scoring victory.
#3 Goan defence keeps Modou Sougou in check
Amine Chermiti's fourth yellow card and Serge Kevyn's hamstring injury forced Jorge Costa to face Goa without a full-packed attacking lineup. The gaffer had no option but to field Modou Sougou as the lone striker and Mohamed Larbi playing behind him. However, the club's all-time top-goalscorer was only a shadow of himself after being kept under check by the opposition defence.
Sougou had only 25 touches on the ball and managed three shots, including two on target. The striker's supply houses, Diego Carlos and Bipin Singh, often could not find the Senegalese at attacking positions.
After Bipin Singh got on the scoresheet in the second half and made the tally 3-2, Mumbai had the opening to pressurize and restore parity. Though they managed to exert pressure for some time, restoring parity stayed away with their talisman's goalscoring boots. Had Modou Sougou been on one of his better nights, Mumbai would have added the enthusiasm in the game to reach out to the hosts.
Whenever Sougou looked dangerous, Mourtada Fall and Carlos Pena were in place to clear the lines. Thus, Goa's excellence in defence paired with Sougou's bad touch ensured a duck for the 35-year-old striker.