ISL: Vikram double fires Mumbai to 4th spot

MUMBAI: Vikram Partap Singh enjoyed a special evening at the Mumbai Football Arena on Sunday, scoring in each half to earn Mumbai City a 2-0 win over Bengaluru FC in the Indian Super League.
Their eighth victory of the season propelled the Islanders to fourth spot (28 points), three points behind leaders Odisha, and also ensured they remain on track to defending their ISL League Winners Shield crown.
It was a luckless evening for the Blues who hit the crossbar twice in the first half, as their sixth loss on the road extended their dreadful away run this season. Their seventh defeat in the league overall left them stuck in 10th place (15 points).
Gerard Zaragoza's side were presented with a promising chance to take an early lead when Valpuia's failed attempt to play the ball out of danger allowed Suresh Singh Wangjam through. But excitement among the Blues faithful in the stadium turned to frustration as the Bengaluru midfielder's left-footed effort struck the crossbar.
In a tight battle, the Islanders were struggling to find their way through a well-organized Bengaluru midfield. Using the pace of Lallianzuala Chhangte on the flank has been a key ploy in Mumbai's attacking approach, but for a good part of the first half, the hosts inexplicably didn't turn much to the man who was named AIFF men's footballer of the year last season.
Bengaluru suffered a setback in the 37th minute, losing Aleksandar Jovanovic to an injury. The Australian had marshalled the backline well until then but had to make way for Serbian Slavko Damjanovic.
Having not allowed Petr Kratky's side a sniff around their goal, Bengaluru undid all the hard work just before half-time through a moment of sheer naivety. Not surprisingly, it was Chhangte who orchestrated the play through which the Islanders would take the lead. The 26-year-old combined with Valpuia on the right, with the defender playing the ball into the box for Apuia. A slight nudge by Chhetri saw Apuia go to ground. Amid half-hearted penalty appeals from Mumbai, neither Chhetri nor any of the Bengaluru defenders reacted, almost as if they were expecting the whistle to blow, allowing an alert Chhangte to quickly resume his run and cut back for Vikram Partap Singh to smash home.
Bengaluru's hopes of salvaging something from the game were effectively extinguished in the 58th minute when Alberto Noguera seized possession outside the Bengaluru box and played Iker Guarrotxena through. The Spanish forward did brilliantly to put in a last-ditch cross for Vikram to rise above Nikhil Poojary and nod past Gurpreet Singh Sandhu at the near post.