ISL final: Mumbai City clinch 2-1 win over ATK Mohun Bagan to lift title

Mumbai City FC snatched a dramatic 2-1 win over ATK Mohun Bagan in the ISL 2020-21 final at the Fatorda Stadium in Goa to lift their maiden title.

ATK Mohun Bagan drew the first blood through David Williams in the 18^th minute, but conceded an own goal in the 29^th minute to hand Mumbai the equaliser.

Tied 1-1 at half-time, Mumbai City overcame the loss of defender Amey Ranawade to a possible head injury at the stroke of the interval, to push for the winner.

And it came in the 90^th minute, off a howler from ATK Mohun Bagan goalkeeper Arindam Bhattacharya. He tried to chest down a long ball outside his box but lost possession to an onrushing Bartholomew Ogbeche. The striker skipped past a couple of defenders and the ball fell in Bipin Singh's path, who fired the ball low into the right corner of the net to spark off wild celebrations in the Mumbai camp.

Both the teams came into the final with identical records—12 wins and just 4 defeats in the league stage.

Mumbai City FC also prevailed on both occasions against the Kolkata side in the league stages including the final league match which handed them the top finish and the Asian Champions League (ACL) berth.

Sergio Lobera's men made it two trophies in two weeks becoming just the second team to top the group phase and win the title. They had earlier won the League Shield too.

Mumbai continued with their usual possession-based football but for Bagan who were out of the blocks early, it was all about surging ahead. While the islanders had over 60 per cent possession in the first quarter, Bagan had more shots on target.

There was an early penalty call when Bipin Singh was challenged in the box by Pritam Kotal, but the referee displayed no interest.

Thereafter, it was all about the Mariners. The Kolkata side pinned their opponents with a high pressing game which forced the Islanders into errors.

The first real threat for Mumbai came from a Javier Hernandez free-kick which brushed the crossbar. Roy Krishna then forced a save from Amrinder Singh from a tight angle.

With pressure mounting on Mumbai's defence, the Kolkata side broke the deadlock first. Krishna dispossessed Ahmed Jahouh just outside the box and slipped a pass to Williams. The Australian got on to his stronger right foot and fired a firm shot past Amrinder.

But with Jahouh and his trademark long deliveries, it was always going to get difficult for ATKMB. And with one such move, Mumbai found themselves back in the game. On seeing Bipin make a run upfront, Jahouh played a long ball from his own half into the Kolkata box. Tiri attempted a clearance but his header landed in his own goal.

Mumbai continued with attack after restart and Raynier Fernandes forced yet another save from Arindam after breaking into the area skipping past challenges from Kolkata defence. The Bagan keeper then produced a fine save to deny Hernan Santana from a free-kick.

At the hour mark, Mumbai probably had the best chance of the game. Arindam managed to block Le Fondre's shot but the rebound traveled to Boumous, whose shot was off-target.

Bagan had the ball in the back of the net when Hernandez's freekick was deflected off Mohamad Rakip into his own net, but the linesman caught Krishna offside.

After producing some fine saves, Arindam made a huge mistake which cost his team the title. After he failed to deal with a long ball properly, Bartholomew Ogbeche chased it down. The ball found its way to Bipin who made no mistake from close range.

Krishna was adjudged the Hero of the League while Igor Angulo won the Golden Boot. Amrinder won the Golden Glove award. Alberto Noguera won the DHL Winning Pass of the Season while Lalengmawia of the NorthEast United was adjudged the Emerging Player of the League. 

(With PTI inputs)