For a match between the second and the last placed teams in the league, the outcome turned out to be far from predictable. Mumbai thwarted Delhi 2-0 via a Sunil Chhetri brace on Wednesday and played with an attacking flair that belied their position in the table.
Chhetri was clinical on both the occasions he scored but praise should also be heaped on the Mumbai attacking duo of Sony Norde and Subhash Singh. They were a constant source of bother for the Dynamos. In the case of the second goal, Norde's run and pass to Chhetri was dazzlingly good.
Subhash Singh lights up Mumbai
Subhash Singh's most noteworthy contribution was to strike the crossbar from 40 yards, aside from that he was consistently harrying the opposition with his plucky runs. At 25, Singh is yet to don the senior national colours, having turned out for the U-19 and U-23 squads earlier, but a national call up might be on the way soon if these performances continue
Perhaps a key basis for the sustained existence of the Indian Super League is not just to be a centre for discovering unknown Indian talent but also to showcase players like Subhash Singh who have been playing away from the spotlight for most of their career. Singh has played for six I-League clubs in a span of eight years and is one of those journeymen that have come to embody Indian football. Rather than seeing repeated footage of Roberto Carlos and Nicholas Anelka gesticulating at the sidelines, it would perhaps be more beneficial for Indian football if viewers get to see more of the likes of Chhetri and Singh playing with wit and energy.
Delhi’s winning run ends
It was not a good night for Delhi as its hitherto defensive solidarity faded with Mumbai making continuous interceptions through its porous midfield. The Delhi goalkeeper, Antonio Doblas Santana had to make numerous saves.
Going forward the Delhi team kept coming short against the Mumbai team's physical approach. Mumbai may have had seven players cautioned for its troubles but this niggardly approach helped scupper any momentum that Delhi could build up. Subrata Pal in goal was not stretched as much as his opposite number was but he kept a good command of proceedings around his box and made a vital save before the second goal was scored. This was as important as any moment in the match.
Ugly skirmish
There was a moment in the first half when players from both teams got involved in a skirmish on the sidelines. Such moments were a recurrent motif during Tuesday’s match between NorthEast United and Chennaiyin FC. Tonight there was no such pattern but one worries about the potentiality for such tiffs to become increasingly physical. The matches are played from 7 pm and yet the commentators cannot help but comment on the humidity factor. It is possible the heat level is such that even experienced players like John Arne Riise cannot keep their cool.
In a sense it is reassuring to see such duels on the sidelines. It is perhaps an indicator of the fact that the stakes are high for quite a few of the involved parties. Perhaps the Indian Super League is not just about providing famous players a nice career ending play -off but also a platform for showcasing such tenacious displays on the field. One reason why football is so followed worldwide is not just for the talent that one gets to see but the potentiality for fighting displays. Mumbai showed that by winning convincingly, belying its table position.
It was hard to believe from the basis of this match that the Mumbaikers had scored only one goal in their previous three ISL matches. Before today they had not won any match in this year's ISL. Perhaps this is a harbinger of better things to come. They have managed to get off the bottom of the table at any rate.
Chhetri was clinical on both the occasions he scored but praise should also be heaped on the Mumbai attacking duo of Sony Norde and Subhash Singh. They were a constant source of bother for the Dynamos. In the case of the second goal, Norde's run and pass to Chhetri was dazzlingly good.
Subhash Singh lights up Mumbai
Subhash Singh's most noteworthy contribution was to strike the crossbar from 40 yards, aside from that he was consistently harrying the opposition with his plucky runs. At 25, Singh is yet to don the senior national colours, having turned out for the U-19 and U-23 squads earlier, but a national call up might be on the way soon if these performances continue
Perhaps a key basis for the sustained existence of the Indian Super League is not just to be a centre for discovering unknown Indian talent but also to showcase players like Subhash Singh who have been playing away from the spotlight for most of their career. Singh has played for six I-League clubs in a span of eight years and is one of those journeymen that have come to embody Indian football. Rather than seeing repeated footage of Roberto Carlos and Nicholas Anelka gesticulating at the sidelines, it would perhaps be more beneficial for Indian football if viewers get to see more of the likes of Chhetri and Singh playing with wit and energy.
Delhi’s winning run ends
It was not a good night for Delhi as its hitherto defensive solidarity faded with Mumbai making continuous interceptions through its porous midfield. The Delhi goalkeeper, Antonio Doblas Santana had to make numerous saves.
Going forward the Delhi team kept coming short against the Mumbai team's physical approach. Mumbai may have had seven players cautioned for its troubles but this niggardly approach helped scupper any momentum that Delhi could build up. Subrata Pal in goal was not stretched as much as his opposite number was but he kept a good command of proceedings around his box and made a vital save before the second goal was scored. This was as important as any moment in the match.
Ugly skirmish
There was a moment in the first half when players from both teams got involved in a skirmish on the sidelines. Such moments were a recurrent motif during Tuesday’s match between NorthEast United and Chennaiyin FC. Tonight there was no such pattern but one worries about the potentiality for such tiffs to become increasingly physical. The matches are played from 7 pm and yet the commentators cannot help but comment on the humidity factor. It is possible the heat level is such that even experienced players like John Arne Riise cannot keep their cool.
In a sense it is reassuring to see such duels on the sidelines. It is perhaps an indicator of the fact that the stakes are high for quite a few of the involved parties. Perhaps the Indian Super League is not just about providing famous players a nice career ending play -off but also a platform for showcasing such tenacious displays on the field. One reason why football is so followed worldwide is not just for the talent that one gets to see but the potentiality for fighting displays. Mumbai showed that by winning convincingly, belying its table position.
It was hard to believe from the basis of this match that the Mumbaikers had scored only one goal in their previous three ISL matches. Before today they had not won any match in this year's ISL. Perhaps this is a harbinger of better things to come. They have managed to get off the bottom of the table at any rate.
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