Mahindra United got their gears together at the right time as they edged past Viva Kerala with a comfortable 2-0 margin in their away match to move closer in the points table in the 13th round match of the ONGC I-League played at the Corporation Stadium here on Thursday.
With the league getting into its final phase, this loss has certainly put Viva under much more pressure since the Kochi-based team has only 12 points with just five matches left and that may not be enough to avoid relegation.
On the other hand, Mahindra has now 20 points after posting this win. Mahindra has moved to the fourth spot with 20 points, leaving behind Mohun Bagan, who also has equal number of points.
Mahindra and Bagan have same goal average, but the former has less number of defeats (three) in comparison to Bagan (four).
Mahindra’s Ghanaian striker Andrews M. Pomeyei (47th minute) who was later rewarded Man of the Match, and Mohammed Rafi (73rd) were the marksmen for the winners.
Mumbai team broke the deadlock early in the second half, as Pomeyei slotted the ball in on a goalmouth melee. Viva tried it’s hard to restore parity but their strikers had to blame themselves for stumbling on crunch moments
Viva’s further hopes dashed when Rafi blasted the second one in the 72nd minute, after receiving an excellent cross from the right by Steven Dias.
Viva Kerala will now fight it out with Churchill Brothers in their next home match here on February 4.
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