Mumbai FC were handed their eighth straight loss of the season as DSK Shivajians handed them a 5-0 shellacking in an I-League tie in Pune on Saturday.
The Shivajians rode on a brace from Halicharan Narzary to take a 2-0 lead before the half-time break.
Narzary scored the opener through a contentious goal in the 15th minute, that was adjudged to have crossed the line despite the melee that ensued in the box. The Mumbai goal-keeper looked to have cleared the ball but it only fell in the path of Narzary, who slammed the ball that hit teammate Sumeet Passi, who had strayed into goal. The referee though awarded the goal to Shivajians.
Narzary doubled the lead for the hosts in the 27th minute after placing in from Juan Quero’s cross from the right.
Frustration soon seemed to have got to Mumbai, as Densil Theobald lunged towards Shivajians’ Sasha Kolunija after the latter went in hard for a tackle on Milan Singh. A melee ensued as players from both sides got into the mix. Both players were shown yellow cards before heading off to the break.
Shivajians added another goal three minutes into the second half through Sanju Pradhan as Quero once again provided the assist. Lallianzuala Chhangte smashed in a fourth in the 67th minute before Jerry Mawihmingthanga made it five to complete the drubbing.
Mumbai have now gone 12 games without a win. They now remain rooted to the bottom of the I-League table and are in real danger of relegation.
Minerva Punjab deny Aizawl
Aizawl FC were held to a 2-2 draw by a resilient Minerva Punjab, who came back from two goals down to steal a point during an I-League at the Guru Nanak Stadium in Ludhiana on Saturday.
The league leaders looked well on their way to victory after opening the scoring through Mahmoud Amnah in the 43rd minute. They doubled their advantage 11 minutes later through Kamo Stephane Bayi.
A late surge from the hosts though denied Aizawl all three points. Loveday Okechukwu pulled one back in the 67th minute before Kareem Nurain levelled the scores in the 84th minute.
Despite the loss, Aizawl remain on top of the table with 30 points.
Mohun Bagan, Bengaluru FC play out goalless draw
Mohun Bagan were held to a goalless draw by Bengaluru FC in a hard-fought game at the Kanteerava Stadium that was marred by plenty of contentious refereeing decisions.
Bagan should have put the game to bed in the second half itself, with a number of attacks forged towards the Bengaluru goal. However, some sloppy finishing kept them from taking the lead.
In the second half, they began on a similar note, but were handed a blow after Subashish Bose was shown a second yellow for arguing with the referee.
With one fewer man on the field than their opponents, Bagan took their foot off the pedal just enough for Bengaluru some respite. The visitors though had the better chances between the two teams and even had a goal disallowed. Yusa Katsumi, who headed in was denied the goal for a foul on Arindam Bhattacharya.
The game saw a frantic last couple of minutes that saw end to end action but did not translate into a goal.
Bagan remain in third place on 23 points, while Bengaluru are fifth with 18.
The scores
- DSK Shivajians 5 (Halicharan Narzary x 2, Sanju Pradhan, Lallianzuala Chhangte, Jerry Mawihmingthanga) beat Mumbai FC 0.
- Minerva Punjab 2 (Loveday Okechukwu, Kareem Nurain) drew with Aizawl 2 (Mahmoud Al Amenah, Kamo Stephane Bayi).
- Bengaluru FC 0 drew with Mohun Bagan 0.
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