AFC Champions League: Mumbai City FC, Al Jazira play out goalless draw
Mumbai City FC and UAE's Al Jazira played out a goalless draw in the AFC Champions League Group B fixture at Riyadh's King Fahd International Stadium on Monday.
Both sides came into the match with three points each from three games and hoped for a victory to keep up pace with the group leaders Al Shabab. These two sides met in the previous match with Ali Mabkhout's spot-kick proving to be the difference in a 1-0 win for Al Jazira.
Al Jazira started the match on a strong note with Mabkhout testing Mumbai goalkeeper Phurba Lachenpa with an effort from the edge of the penalty box after just five minutes.
Mumbai's Apuia had a chance from a corner, but he failed to hit the shot on target. Rahul Bheke, who scored the winner against Iraq's Al Quwa Al Jawiya (Air Force Club), tried a long ranger but not enough to threaten Al Jazira's goalkeeper.
Around the half-hour mark, Mumbai goalkeeper Lachenpa produced a superb save to deny Bruno. Mabkhout's cross was met by Bruno who tried a clever finish with a deft touch from a close range, but Lachenpa dived to his right to save the shot.
With two minutes to go for the half-time, Mumbai midfielder Vinit Rai made a mistake of passing the ball to Mabkhout on the edge of their box, but Bruno's final shot failed to hit the target. A minute later, Al Jazira had another chance to open the scoring, but Abdoulaye Diaby's hit was blocked by Lachenpa.
The second-half was a cagey affair with both teams struggling to create clear-cut chances. In the 85th minute, Mumbai created their best opportunity to score with Brad Inman playing a through ball to Diego Maurício. It was a one-on-one chance, but Al Jazira goalkeeper Ali Khaseif did well to race ahead and block the effort.
Both teams are on four points after four games and can still qualify to the Round of 16. Mumbai will next face group leaders Al Shabab on Saturday.
Fixtures
MCFC 0-3 Al Shabab (10.45 PM, April 8)
Air Force Club 1-2 MCFC (10.45 PM, April 11)
Al Jazira 1-0 MCFC (10.45 PM, April 14)
MCFC vs Al Jazira (10.45 PM, April 18)
Al Shabab vs MCFC (1.45 AM, April 23)
MCFC vs Al Quwa Al Jawiya (1.45 AM, April 27)
The LIVE telecast will be on Disney+ Hotstar/Star Sports.
Game Information
- Referees:
- Hiroyuki Kimura
AFC Champions League Elite Standings
| Team | GP | W | D | L | GD | P |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Al Hilal | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | +11 | 12 |
| Al Ahli | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | +8 | 12 |
| Al Sadd | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | +3 | 8 |
| Al Nassr | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | +2 | 7 |
| Al Wasl | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 7 |
| Al Gharafa | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | -2 | 4 |
| Esteghlal | 4 | 1 | 0 | 3 | -3 | 3 |
| Pakhtakor Tashkent | 3 | 0 | 2 | 1 | -1 | 2 |
| Persepolis | 4 | 0 | 2 | 2 | -2 | 2 |
| Al-Shorta | 4 | 0 | 2 | 2 | -9 | 2 |
| Al-Ain | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | -3 | 1 |
| Al Rayyan | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | -4 | 0 |
AFC Champions League Elite News