NEW DELHI: Mumbai City FC thrashed bottom dwellers Odisha FC 6-1 at the GMC Stadium Bambolim on Wednesday to roar back to form right on time. The win sets up a mouth-watering clash with ATK Mohun Bagan to see who clinches the League Winners Shield and along with it the coveted AFC Champions League spot.
The Islanders are three points behind the leaders now and ended their three match winless run with Bipin Singh scoring the first hat-trick of the season. The first Odisha have struggled throughout the season and that trend continued under the tutelage of Steven Dias. They now have nine points from 19 games and they suffered the biggest defeat of the season and the biggest away loss in ISL history as well.
Mumbai seemed to be suffering from the hangover from their previous loss and the match began in disastrous fashion as Ahmed Jahouh conceded a penalty after fouling Jerry Mawihmingthanga inside the box within the first eight minutes. The penalty was scored by Diego Mauricio but it should have been saved by Amrinder Singh.
But the Islanders came back strongly as they equalised within the next five minutes. Bartholomew Ogbeche scored from a fine diving header from an inch-perfect Jahouh free-kick. And that goal seemed to bring Mumbai back to life and from that moment onwards, it was all one-way traffic.
Bipin got his first of the night from a deflected Ogbeche shot while the Nigerian grabbed his second of the game five minutes later from another Jahouh free-kick. Cy Goddard grabbed his first goal of the season a minute later as Sergio Lobera's side went into half-time with a commanding 4-1 lead.
They began the second half the same way they left off as Bipin grabbed his second of the night with a right footed curler. Substitute Vikram Pratap Singh won a penalty which Jahouh failed to score. But Bipin rounded off a great night for the Mumbai side as he grabbed his and the season's first treble to set up a thrilling finale to the league stage.
Mumbai City FC coach Sergio Lobera was pleased with his side's display as he looked forward to Sunday's mammoth clash. "Obviously this is the most important moment in the season. We needed to react and it's not only about the result but also how the team played and took the three points. I am very happy because it's going to be a very good game against ATK Mohun Bagan. I think we deserve to fight till the end. We deserve the victory and to play the last league game like a final."