Mumbai City FC earned their first home point of the 2019/20 season of the Indian Super League as goal from Amine Chermiti cancelled Raphael Messi Bouli strike to share the stakes with Kerala Blasters at Mumbai Football Arena on Thursday.

Mumbai, who now have played three draws on the bounce, posed greater threat in the open play. Modou Sougou, who scored four goals against Kerala the last time these sides met at the venue, had plenty of chances, but the end product was missing on the night.

Heading into the game with a better head-to-head record, having won four of their 11 games against Kerala, manager Jorge Costa made two changes in his team, with Mato Grgic replacing Sauvik Chakraborti at the back. Mohamed Larbi, on the other hand, was deployed upfront in place of injured Diego Carlos.

Plenty of action to take note of and this is what we learned from the game.

Grgic added steal

Grgic played the ISL opener for Mumbai against Kerala but has been out of action since. The likes of Pratik Chaudhari and Sarthak Golui were given the defensive duties in his absence, and it is fair to say Mumbai struggled to cope with the pressure at times.

Against Kerala this time around, the Islanders looked composed in defence. Golui, who worked as a right-back on the night, had as many as 72 touches and put on five tackles, 13 clearances and three blocks. Grgic, on the other hand, commanded the back-line which kept Kerala at bay for most part of the game. Baring the goal, Kerala attempted handful chances towards Amrinder Singh.

Read | How Mumbai City FC midfielders kept NorthEast United on toe

Mumbai strike late

Contrary to their previous outings, Mumbai played fewer passes than their opponents and were outclassed in possession. Regardless of the numbers though, Costa’s men have developed a habit of striking late in the game, surprising their opponents when fatigue starts kicking. They, in fact, have scored 40% of their goals after the 75-minute mark.

Their opening goal of the campaign, against Kerala, was bagged in the 82nd minute, while one of their two goals against Odisha came in the 95th minute. The drama continued against ATK at the Vivekananda Yuba Bharati Krirangan stadium when Serge Kevyn scored a dramatic 93rd-minute goal only to see Roy Krishna equalizing three minutes later.

Chermiti comes back to haunt Kerala

Mumbai and Kerala squared off against each other back in October and it was Chermiti whose only goal gave his team all three points. The Tunisian, who scored a brace against NorthEast United, came back to haunt the Tuskers by scoring two minutes after Messi put the Blasters ahead. The 31-year-old scored his fourth goal of the season and it couldn’t have come at a better time than this.

Feature image courtesy: Twitter / IndSuperLeague

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