ISL: Why Jamshedpur FC may get No Points, Mumbai City maybe awarded Three Points despite Draw? Explained

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Jamshedpur FC have found themselves in a pickle as the club may lose the point they earned from the 1-1 draw against Mumbai City on Friday (March 8).

The two teams collided at the JRD Tata Complex and the Red Miners managed a point from the game, but as per the latest understandings, Mumbai may be awarded all three points for a bizarre mistake made by Jamshedpur FC.

Jamshedpur FC made an error in calculation and violated the minimum Indian players rule in the ISL. And the Islanders have lodged a formal complaint to the ISL committee against their Friday's opponents.

The ISL rule states, "Each Club shall ensure that at least seven (7) Domestic Players are fielded and playing on the field at all times throughout each Match except where any such Domestic Player(s) is dismissed as a result of him receiving a red card in such Match."

Furthermore, the rule specifies that, "Failure to comply with this rule will result in a sanction of 3-0 loss for the defaulter Club in the particular Match unless the opposing team was winning/has won the Match by a higher score, in which case the result on the field will be awarded."

What mistake did Jamshedpur FC make?

Jamshedpur FC failed to keep seven Indian players on the field in the final minutes of the match. After Daniel Chima Chukwu saw a Red Card, they brought on Alen Stevanovic replacing Imran Khan.

Although there were still only four foreigners on the field, the ten-men Red Miners only had six Indian players, which is a violation of the ISL rule. Mumbai City were alert to this and have now registered a complaint against the club.

The decision is now for the ISL committee to solve this matter. Going by the rules, it looks like that Mumbai may be handed all three points and Jamshedpur may have no points at all from the match.

It can be a season-defining ruling from ISL as it will have consequences on both teams and beyond. Three points will mean that Mumbai City will not only leapfrog Odisha but they will be two points ahead of the Juggernauts at the summit of the ISL table.

It will also have an impact on Jamshedpur, who are fighting for a playoffs spot. The Red Miners are currently 7th in the table with 21 points in 19 matches, and a point deduction can have damaging ramifications for their seasonal aspirations.