Defending champions Mumbai City FC secured the final playoff berth in the 2024-25 Indian Super League (ISL) with a crucial 2-0 victory over Bengaluru FC at the Sree Kanteerava Stadium on Tuesday. The win saw Mumbai edge past Odisha FC in the standings, finishing with 36 points to Odisha’s 33.
First-half goals from Lallianzuala Chhangte and Nikolaos Karelis proved decisive as Mumbai booked a knockout clash against Bengaluru later this month. Despite already being assured of third place, BFC’s performance was largely uninspired, raising concerns ahead of the rematch.
Bengaluru head coach Gerard Zaragoza opted to rest key players, with first-choice goalkeeper Gurpreet Singh Sandhu starting on the bench and the influential duo of Chinglensana Singh and Alberto Noguera missing from the squad entirely. Creative midfielder Ryan Williams was withdrawn at halftime, while captain Sunil Chhetri struggled to make an impact.
Mumbai, with their season on the line, made a flying start. In the eighth minute, Chhangte capitalized on a defensive lapse by Aleksandar Jovanovic, bundling the ball home after a goalmouth scramble. Jovanovic’s night worsened in the 37th minute when he fouled Karelis inside the box, gifting Mumbai a penalty. The Greek forward made no mistake, calmly doubling the lead.
BFC failed to register a single shot on target, though they had a couple of half-chances in the first half. Chhetri’s header across goal narrowly missed Edgar Mendez, while the veteran striker later miscontrolled a lofted ball from Williams at the far post. In the second half, Mendez had another opportunity but fired wide under pressure from Mumbai goalkeeper Phurba Lachenpa.
Aside from these moments, Mumbai dominated proceedings. Their compact defense and controlled midfield play stifled BFC, and they could have added more goals. Substitute Vikram Pratap Singh almost put the icing on the cake in the 78th minute, unleashing a powerful strike from distance that forced a fine save from BFC’s Sahil.
Though Mumbai will be pleased with their performance, they will need to replicate their dominance when they face BFC again in the single-legged playoff clash in Bengaluru. Meanwhile, Odisha’s campaign came to a disappointing end, as Mumbai’s triumph dashed their postseason hopes.
With the playoffs set to begin soon, Mumbai’s title defense remains alive, but BFC will be looking to put up a much stronger fight in the upcoming knockout encounter.
