Goa: A lone goal in the second half by Brison Fernandes helped FC Goa beat Mumbai City FC in the RF Development League at the Nagoa Panchayat Ground here on Sunday.
The win, second on the trot for Goa, see them move up to third on the table, tied on points with Hyderabad FC.
FC Goa got the ball rolling in the first half, and immediately switched to attack mode as they created many chances. Their earliest goalscoring opportunity came in the 3rd minute itself, when Deeshank Kunkalikar fired in a lovely cross from the right. There was, however, no one to connect with it at the other end as the ball rolled out for a throw in.
Five minutes later, Mevan Dias missed an easy chance when he headed wide off a cross by Jovial Dias.
Cardozo’s boys continued to create chances throughout the first half, but the absence of good finishing prevented them from impacting the scoresheet.
Mumbai City started the second half well, but their domination lasted for only a few minutes before FC Goa regained their mojo. What followed was a repeat of first half’s action, as the ball seldom crossed into the Gaurs’ own half.
Their efforts were finally rewarded in the 64th minute, when Brison Fernandes scored.
A solid passage of play amongst Mevan Dias, Lalremruata HP and Brison eventually ended with HP finding the latter at the edge of the box with a short pass. The midfielder deftly moved the ball to create space before unleashing his shot which beat goalkeeper Nishit and landed in the far bottom corner of the net.
Following the goal, FC Goa continued to assert their dominance and came close to scoring once again in the dying minutes but Mevan Dias saw his effort strike the post instead.
Deggie Cardozo and his boys will return to action in the RF Development League at 8:00am on May 11, when they take on RF Young Champs at the Nagoa Panchayat Ground.
–IANS