FC Goa, down by a 20th minute goal from Mumbai City FC’s Rafael Bastos, shook off the slumber to hammer two first-half goals and three in the second in the first leg of the second semifinal at the Mumbai Football Arena here on Saturday. Mourtada Fall moved from central defender to wrecker-in-chief, via two headed goals off corner-kicks. Jackichand Singh converted a rebound while Ferran Corominas and Brandon Fernandes got on the scorers’ sheet during the goal-fest.
The visitors needed a morale-boosting equaliser from Jackichand before raising the tempo and switching on their famed passing game. Goals came from set-pieces even as the Mumbai defence kept crumbling under pressure. The Goa fans in the stands demanded seven goals and the players scored five. The teams will meet in the second leg in Goa on Tuesday (March 12).
Naveen to the fore
Referee Hamad Ali had booked Arnold Issoko early for a dangerous kick at Carlos Pena, followed by a caution. The Congo player also made his presence felt in the rival half with a floater from the right towards the target but Naveen Kumar, composed under the bar for most part, plucked the ball from the air. He had an answer for any aerial attempt by the home team, even coming up with a stylish save off a Paulo Machado free-kick.
Mumbai went ahead in the 20th minute when the muscular Congo player drove down the right and put the approaching defender off-balance with twists and turns. Pawan, positioned under the bar, had no attacker to worry about when Issoko kicked the ball goalwards. Bastos sprung out of nowhere to direct the ball home from a narrow angle at the left post.
The visitors drew level 11 minutes later when Corominas got space on the left for a snap shot. Amrinder blocked the ball with a dive but Jackichand swept home the rebound. Mumbai paid the price for slack defending during a corner-kick as defender Mourtada connected with a leaping header. Corominas, who took his tally to 16 goals, tops the Golden Boot chart.
The result: FC Goa 5 (Jackichand Singh 31, Mourtada Fall 39, 58, Ferran Corominas 51, Brandon Fernandes 82) bt Mumbai City FC 1 (Rafael Bastos 20).