Odisha FC showed the rest of the league how dangerous they can be…but can they keep winning?
Looking at how Odisha FC started their season, losing their first two games, Mumbai City would have considered this fixture as a three-pointer. But the away team that turned up at the Mumbai Football Arena on Thursday had a twist to script in their tale.
Josep Gombau’s team, earlier known as Delhi Dynamos, were three goals by half-time and added another after the break to register their first win in the Indian Super League after the club rebranded themselves as Odisha FC and relocated to Bhubaneswar.
While the Mumbai City defence needs a talking-to for their display, Odisha FC played well from the back to the front. The team, which is relatively very young, showed what they are capable of in the attacking third, with the entire front three teaming up exquisitely to keep the scoreboard ticking.
Indians Shubham Sarangi, Jerry Mawhmingthanga and Nandhakumar Sekar were particularly impressive for the visitors. Add Aridane Santana’s explosive centre-forward play and Xisco Hernandez’s craft to the mix and Odisha were threatening Mumbai every time they went forward.
Sarangi, who started his career as a midfielder before turning out as a right-back this season, excelled on the right flank and was the source for the moves that produced two out of the first three goals. He released Jerry down the right before the winger found Santana for Odisha’s second goal. Later on, the youngster produced a neat cross-field diagonal to find Nandhakumar Sekar who then cut in and struck the crossbar before Jerry scored from the rebound.
It wasn’t flawless by any means. The defence had minor issues, with Mumbai City forwards being allowed space inside the box for crosses from both flanks at various points in the game. But the key here for Josep Gombau, who has been at the receiving end of criticism for lack of wins with Delhi Dynamos, is consistency.
Delhi Dynamos also showed glimpses of brilliance in the attacking third only to throw games way and become inconsistent as the season wore on. There is no room for a repeat of last season for the squad which is not built from scratch. There was a lack of winning mentality at Delhi but Josep Gombau will be hoping that the Odisha project can be different and the first step towards a better season is to build on their performance at the Arena in Mumbai.
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