Bengaluru FC 1-2 Mumbai City FC: Player ratings for the Islanders as they crash out after penalty shootout | ISL 2022-23
Bengaluru FC defeated Mumbai City FC on Sunday to secure a spot in the final of the 2022-23 ISL season. Javi Hernandez gave the Blues an early lead, but the Islanders bounced back and scored twice to level the scores on aggregate.
After 120 minutes of nail-biting action, the game proceeded to penalty shootout, where Simon Grayson’s men got the better of their opponents with a scoreline of 9-8.
In the opening stages, the visitors, who were a goal down, committed men forward and attacked intensely. Their efforts were rewarded when Gurpreet Singh Sandhu was deemed to have fouled Jorge Pereyra Diaz in the penalty box.
However, Gurpreet redeemed himself as he expertly parried away Greg Stewart's penalty. Following this huge moment in the game, the tide shifted in Bengaluru FC’s favor.
Sivashakthi Narayanan’s trickery caught the Islanders off guard and his inch-perfect delivery was converted by Hernandez to make it 2-0 on aggregate (22').
Mumbai City kept probing and eventually found a goal through Bipin Singh to half the difference in aggregate score (30'). The highly entertaining half ended with a scoreline of 1-1.
An intense half comes to an end with @bengalurufc leading the tie on aggregate! 🤜🤛
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Des Buckingham’s side continued to pile on the pressure in the second half, but Bengaluru FC were dangerous on the break and tested Lachenpa a couple of times.
Mumbai City, however, finally breached Bengaluru’s resolute defense from a set-piece situation. Mehtab Singh rose to the highest and scored a towering header to level the tie (66').
The breathtaking encounter ultimately ended with a 1-2 score in regulation time. The extra time was an end-to-end affair where both sides had opportunities to steal the game, but a penalty shootout was needed to decide on a spot in the final.
Both teams scored eight penalties before Gurpreet Singh Sandhu saved Mehtab Singh’s spot kick. Sandesh Jhingan had the opportunity to become a hero and he grabbed it with both hands as he beat Lachenpa to seal his side a spot in the final.
After 210 minutes of drama, Mumbai City FC ultimately crashed out of the Indian Super League. On that note, let’s take a look at how the Islanders fared against Bengaluru FC.
Mumbai City FC player ratings
Phurba Lachenpa [9]
Lachenpa made himself big to deny Javi Hernandez towards the end of the first half when the scores were level. He certainly had his own battle with Hernandez as he once again denied the Spaniard after Mumbai City FC scored their second goal of the night.
Lanchenpa then pulled off the save of the night when his fingertip denied Roy Krishna from six yards out. However, MCFC’s custodian did not save any of the nine penalties in the shootout, which would have disappointed him.
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Rahul Bheke [8]
Bheke was solid defensively and his overlaps provided a source for the Islanders in wide areas. His crossing was also on point as he completed four crosses and made 14 passes into the final third.
Mourtada Fall [5]
Fall was ball-watching and in no man’s land when Javi Hernandez made a late run to score. He was also booked for a lunging challenge in the first half and almost scored an own goal in the second half as well.
Mehtab Singh [6.5]
Mehtab was easily beaten by Sivashakthi on the flanks, which led to their first goal. But the defender redeemed himself with a stunning header to level the scores on aggregate.
The 24-year-old certainly improved after the break and was a towering presence at the back. However, he quickly turned from a hero to a villain as he missed the decisive spot kick.
Vignesh Dakshinamurthy [6.5]
Vignesh received space to drive with the ball, but his final pass let him down on several occasions. He was ultimately replaced after the first half of extra time.
Ahmed Jahouh [7]
Jahouh was tidy in possession and kept the game moving. He, however, struggled to defend the Blues’ transitions in the second half. The Moroccan also got into the referee’s books after a poor challenge in extra time.
Overall, he completed the most passes in the game (66) and created four chances.
Rowllin Borges [7]
Rowllin added a physical presence in midfield. Additionally, his late runs into the box posed problems for BFC and led to the Islanders’ opening goal. He completed 90 percent of his passes and made eight passes into the final third.
Greg Stewart [8.5]
Stewart started the game brightly but missed a huge penalty in the 10th minute. After a disappointing first half, he showed his class in the second and controlled the tempo of the game.
Furthermore, he created the most chances in the game (7) and assisted his side’s second goal from a corner. Stewart once again stepped up for a spot-kick in the shootout, but he converted his penalty the second time.
Lallianzuala Chhangte [6.5]
Chhangte was anonymous in the first half as Mumbai City FC created chances from the left side. However, he should have done better on the rebound from Stewart’s penalty.
The winger improved in the second half but did not create anything of significance.
Bipin Singh [8]
7 - Bipin Singh (@MumbaiCityFC) registered his seventh goal of the ongoing @IndSuperLeague season, his most in a single season surpassing his tally of six goals in the 2020/21 & 2021/22 season. Upgrade.
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Bipin was lively and was in the right place at the right time to score a crucial goal in the first half. He often looked to get into the box but did not receive any chances. After an intense 80 minutes, Bipin was replaced due to an injury.
Jorge Pereyra Diaz [6]
Diaz held the ball well and brought others into play. He also won a penalty which Stewart failed to convert. In the second half, the striker constantly dropped deeper and looked to link up play.
Diaz then missed two clear-cut chances in extra time. First, the Argentinian missed from four yards out, following which he fluffed a simple header from Stewart’s cross. It was certainly not his day in front of the goal.
Substitutes
Vikram Pratap Singh [7.5]
Vikram added energy on the flanks and made some unselfish runs to create space for his side. His excellent cross late in the game found Pereyra Diaz, but the striker failed to convert it.
Vinit Rai [6]
Rai kept the game ticking and completed 15 out of 18 passes. He also calmly tucked away his penalty.
Saurav Mandal [6]
Mandal replaced Vignesh with 15 minutes of the game left and did his job well when called into action.