ISL: Odisha FC and Mumbai City play out a cagey draw- Talking points

Odisha FC and Mumbai City FC played out a cagey goalless draw at the Kalinga Stadium, in Odisha on Thursday.

After a very dull first half, Mumbai City sprung into life but Amrinder Singh's heroics between the goal and the woodwork kept Odisha in the match, and late in the game, they missed the chance to take all three points with Diego Mauricio hitting the post.

With this, Odisha FC climbs to fourth in the ISL table, with 16 points in 11 games, and Mumbai City FC, the ISL Cup winners of last year, are at 8th, with 14 points from 10 games.

A lifeless first half and an action-packed second half

In every sense of the word, this game was a tale of two halves. The first half had nothing in it, barring a few long range shots from Karelis of MCFC and one chance for Diego Mauricio.

Both teams canceled each other out, and were defensively up for the task, and MCFC were poignant in their pressing but had little to show for in the final third.

However, the second half breathed life into the match, with MCFC coming out all guns blazing. Chance after chance fell for the Mumbai side, but none of them seemed to go in, thanks to Amrinder Singh and the woodwork.

Towards the end, Odisha almost pulled off a heist, with Diego Mauricio finding himself one on one with the keeper from just a few yards from goal but his shot hit the post and went wide, much to the shock of the Kalinga striker.

Although both sides had even possession, MCFC had a much busier time at the Odisha goal, but were denied ultimately.

Amrinder Singh to the rescue

Amrinder Singh, Odisha FC's goalkeeper, had a fantastic game between the sticks.

After a quiet first half, where he had little to do except for parrying Karelis' long shots, he was called into action mulitple times in the second half, but he stood tall and denied entry.

There were some stunning saves in the eight total saves he made tonigh, capping off a performance that he will remember for a long time.

Mumbai City on the rise

For MCFC, they are going through a resurgence after a very ordinary start to the 2024-25 ISL campaign.

After last year, where they almost ended up winning both the ISL Shield and Cup, but had to settle for the ISL Cup, it was expected that they will be one of the teams to beat but started very poorly.

But those seem to be in the past for Petr Kratky's men, as they have started hitting momentum with a good run of games.

In the last five games, they have lost just once, and are looking more and more solid. A late run into the top six and maybe even a title charge cannot be ruled out for the men in blue.

Coaches speak

Before the match, MCFC head coach Petr Kratky insisted on stopping the goalscoring threat of Odisha FC, and was pleased that his side was able to do so.

Speaking after the match, "I did they (the players) did a fantastic job, and we were a better team."

"I was very pleased what I saw today. determination worked hard, but unfortunately just a point. Unfortunately, we could hit a couple of shots on the bars but I figure we're a better team today," he added.

Odisha FC head coach Sergio Lobero hinted at a few areas of improvement for his side, who were on the backfoot for large parts of the game.

"I think today was not a good game. It was difficult for us in the first half we gave a lot of space. Also, we are losing a lot of balls unnecessarily and we have to avoid this," he said.

What next for both teams?

Odisha FC are on the road for their next match, and will face East Bengal FC on 12th December.

Mumbai City FC will also be in Kolkata for their next match, facing Mohammedan SC on 15th December.