Durand Cup 2023: Mumbai City FC, FC Goa clinch big wins

Kolkata (West Bengal) [India], August 9 (ANI): The Indian Super League (ISL) Champions Mumbai City FC continued their winning run in style, romping to a 5-0 victory against Jamshedpur FC in the Durand Cup 2023 at the Vivekananda Yuba Bharati Krirangan in Kolkata on Tuesday.
Mumbai City FC took control of the match from the whistle and never let it go. In the 5th minute, Greg Stewart almost gave MCFC the lead with a brilliant free-kick, but his curling effort hit the frame of the post. The subsequent attack saw Mehtab Singh drawing the Jamshedpur FC goalkeeper into a brilliant save.
The Islanders maintained their pressure, and they didn't have to wait long as Jorge Pereyra Diaz put them ahead after a nice passage of play between Stewart and Vikram Pratap. The Argentine forward doubled the lead within the opening 15 minutes with another composed finish from inside the box. 
The Men of Steel tried to get back into the game, and their custodian made a couple of good saves. However, he couldn't hold on for long, as Alberto Noguera extended the lead for MCFC with a lovely dink over the keeper just before the half-time break.
The Islanders started the second half with the same zeal, and it only took them two minutes to extend the lead further. Dutchman Yoëll van Nieff, who wore the MCFC colours for the first time, got to the end of a Stewart corner and made no mistake in finding the back of the net from the edge of the six-yard box.
Vikram Pratap scored MCFC’s fifth goal of the night when he met a pinpoint cross from Greg and put it behind the keeper with a superb diving header. Des Buckingham introduced a fresh pair of legs for the final thirty minutes, and they continued the same pressure, with Apuia and van Nieff bossing the centre of the pitch.
Jamshedpur FC tried to pull one back, but the Islanders looked too strong for the young JFC side.
The Men of Steel will square off against the Indian Navy on August 17, while Mumbai City FC will meet the Navy side two days later in their closing group stage game.
Also, FC Goa commenced their journey in the Durand Cup 2023 with an emphatic win over Shillong Lajong FC. The Gaurs triumphed over the Reds with a convincing 6-0 scoreline at the Indira Gandhi Athletic Stadium in Guwahati on Tuesday.
Rowllin Borges, Victor Rodriguez, and Carlos Martinez all made an impressive start to their FC Goa careers by registering their names on the scoresheet, while Moroccan forward Noah Sadaoui achieved a remarkable hat-trick.
Assistant coach Benito Montalvo led the Gaurs’ charge on Tuesday, in the absence of head coach Manolo Marquez who is serving a red-card suspension from the last season. The Argentinian tactician handed Sandesh Jhingan, Odei Onaindia and Rowllin Borges their first starts for the Club, while Carlos Martinez, Victor Rodriguez and Raynier Fernandes also made their debuts in the second half.
It took FC Goa just 15 minutes after kick-off to break the deadlock. Brandon found Devendra Murgaokar in the six-yard box with a free-kick, and the latter flicked the ball onto Borges to find the back of the net with ease.
Noah doubled their lead five minutes later, with Murgaokar once again in the thick of things as he laid the ball off for his teammate to finish into an empty goal, with the goalkeeper caught out of position.
The Moroccan international scored his second goal in the 27th minute, after latching on to a long pass played by Brandon from close to the halfway line and beating the ‘keeper with a fine shot into the far corner of the net.
Following the change of ends, the Gaurs adopted a relaxed approach to playing the game and were happy to just move the ball amongst themselves patiently in search of the next opportunity to strike.
This was finally delivered by substitute Sanson Pereira in the 68th minute when he squared it to Victor Rodriguez from the edge of the six-yard box for the latter to score within minutes of coming on.
Carlos Martinez then added his own name to the scoresheet in the 83rd minute, while Sadaoui completed his hat-trick three minutes later to add the finishing touches to FC Goa’s first win of the season.
The Gaurs will face NorthEast United FC next in a potential clash to determine the group winner on Saturday. (ANI)