ISL
ISL: Chhetri rises as Bengaluru FC stops Mumbai City juggernaut
This was Bengaluru FC's seventh win on the trot.
Sunil Chhetri (Source: Bengaluru FC/Twitter)
Bengaluru FC defeated Mumbai City FC 2-1 in the Indian Super League as the Blues ended the Islanders' unbeaten streak in the 2022-23 season. Goals from skipper Sunil Chhetri and Javi Hernandez were enough to down the league winners.
The Mumbai side clinched the league winners shield after their 5-3 win against FC Goa. It seemed certain that Des Buckingham's side would finish the regular season as invincible, but in-form Bengaluru had other plans in mind.
Coming into this game with six consecutive wins, Simon Grayson's side still seemed as the underdogs as the might of the Islanders. However, skipper Chhetri, who got his first start since their 1-2 defeat to East Bengal, literally rose to the occasion and led the Blues charge to break Mumbai's streak.
After a steady first half, it was in the 57th minute when Chhetri gave Bengaluru the lead in the game after a Hernandez corner delivered the perfect ball inside the box. Less than 15 minutes later, it was Hernandez's chance to net a goal as Aleksandr Jovanovic persevered inside Mumbai's box to cut the ball back to the Spaniard.
While Mourtada Fall got a goal back for the table-toppers, the hosts in Bengaluru stood their ground firm as they stepped towards the playoffs with their seventh win on the trot.
Interestingly, there have been only two teams who have beaten Mumbai City FC this 2022-23 season: East Bengal in the Durand Cup group stage, and Bengaluru in the finals of the same tournament.
Mumbai City meet East Bengal for their final league stage match in the ISL. Can the Red and Gold Brigade add another upset in the final stages of this exhilarating Indian Super League season?
