ISL: Bengaluru FC leave Mumbai in shatters, as they clock 5-0 win to qualify for semifinal

Bengaluru FC will play FC Goa across two legs of the semi-final on April 2 and April 6, respectively

Hyderabad: Bengaluru FC blanked Mumbai City FC 5-0 in the ISL play-off to qualify for the semifinal at the Sree Kanteerava Stadium in Bengaluru on Saturday.

The Blues has set up a last-four fixture with FC Goa now, whereas the Islanders’ season wraps up with this defeat.

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The Blues discovered early inroads through Ryan Williams in the ninth minute, as the attacker laid in a low cross inside the Mumbai City FC box. Thaer Krouma could not control the pace put behind the pass, though, leading to a disarrayed interception that was met by Suresh Singh Wangjam and drilled into the bottom right corner to open the scoring for the home side.

The situation had become complicated for the Islanders when Williams earned a spot-kick before the half-time break, as he was brought down in the penalty area by Hmingthanmawia Ralte. Edgar Mendez converted the opportunity with impeccable ease, depositing the ball into the centre of the goal in the 42nd minute to double the Blues’ lead.

Sunil Chhetri joined the scoring spree in the 76th minute with a long-distance stunner that caught the Islanders aback. As the Islanders pushed numbers ahead to cut the deficit, they ended up conceding ample space at the back, and Jorge Pereyra Diaz spotted and served Chhetri a straightforward pass that the striker shot from outside of the box to the high centre of the goal with exceptional accuracy.

Diaz got his name on the scoresheet against his former team, as Alberto Noguera, also an ex-Mumbai City FC star, showed timely awareness to lay the striker a pass in the middle of the box in the 83rd minute. The forward pounced upon the chance, netting the ball into the bottom right corner to cap off a captivating five-star performance for the home side.

Bengaluru FC will play FC Goa across two legs of the semi-final on April 2 and April 6, respectively, whereas Mumbai City FC have been eliminated from the competition.

The result: Bengaluru FC 5 (Suresh Singh Wangjam 9’, Edgar Mendez 42’, Ryan Williams 62’, Sunil Chhetri 76’, Jorge Pereyra Diaz 83’) beat Mumbai City FC 0.