ISL: NorthEast United vs Mumbai City: Mumbai go top of the table with comfortable 3-1 victory

Guwahati, November 25: Mumbai City FC have gone to the ISL summit after a comfortable 3-1 win over NorthEast United FC in the Hero Indian Super League (ISL) at the Indira Gandhi Athletic Stadium in Guwahati on Friday.

Ahmed Jahouh, Bipin Singh, and Jorge Diaz scored the goals for the Islanders, while Parthib Gogoi pulled one back for NorthEast United FC, which was also his first goal for the club. New signing Wilmar Jordan came on to make his debut for the Highlanders in the 57th minute but they were already 3-1 down and the striker couldn't change the outcome of the tie.

The hosts switched their formation to a 4-3-3 and made just one change as Rochharzela came in to replace Emil Benny. The visitors also made one change that saw Lalengmawia Ralte drop to the bench as Vinit Rai took his spot in the midfield.

As it Happened:

Mumbai City FC were awarded a penalty in the 10th minute after Greg Stewart was clipped by Rochharzela just outside the box. The referee pointed to the spot, and Jahouh smashed it in to put the Islanders in front.

The lead did not last for a long time as a sloppy pass from Mehtab Singh went straight to Romain Philippoteaux. The Frenchman instantly put Gogoi through on goal before the youngster kept his composure and put away the leveller with aplomb in the 17th minute.

In the 28th minute, the Islanders were back in front. Stewart was the architect again as he whipped in a ball into the box from the right flank. The ball found its way to Bipin, who headed it in at the far post to restore Mumbai City FC's advantage.

Thirty seconds into the second half, Mumbai doubled their lead. Bipin went down the left side and got his shot away. The effort was parried by Mirshad Michu, but Diaz was in the right place at the right time to score for the Islanders.

In the final quarter of the game, a plethora of opportunities fell to Mumbai City FC, but they could not add another goal to their tally. The Islanders had 22 shots attempted and 13 of those ended up being on target.

NorthEast vs Mumbai City FC Lineup:

NorthEast: Michu; Zoherliana, Evans, Jakobsen, Kumar; Gogoi (Emanuel), Gaztanaga (Jordan), Philippoteaux; Rochharzela (Irshad), Gogoi (Benny), Khan (Nigam)

Mumbai: Lachenpa; Bheke, Griffiths, Singh, Vignesh; Stewart, Jahouh (Fall), Rai (Borges); Chhangte (Singh), Pereyra (Noguera), Thounaojam

Aftermath:

The win means Mumbai go to the top of the ISL table, surpassing Hyderabad FC who are set to face ATK Mohun Bagan on Saturday. Mumbai will face FC Goa next at home on December 1. NorthEast United are still languishing at the bottom after suffering 7 defeats in 7 games. They will travel to Bhubaneshwar to face Odisha FC on December 2.

Key Stats:

• Greg Stewart kept 6 of his 8 shots on target and finished with 2 assists.
• Mirshad Michu faced 13 shots and produced 10 saves in the match.
• Ahmed Jahouh completed 84 out of 101 passes, finishing with a pass accuracy of 83%.
• Vigensh Dakshinamurthy of the Islanders won 4 tackles, the most in the game. He also finished the match with 2 successful dribbles, most in the game by any player.