PUNE: Mumbai FC held table-toppers Chruchill Bros to a goalless draw, who seemed totally off-colour in a Round 18 match of I-League at Balewadi Stadium here, Thursday.
The Goan team played scratchy football all through and not once did they threaten Mumbai. Still, one point from the drawn match was enough to keep Churchill way ahead of the challengers.
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Churchill now have 38 points from 16 matches and are five points ahead of Dempo and East Bengal. Mumbai improved their tally to 25 points from 17 matches, but they stay on No 6 position, a point behind Prayag.
Mumbai’s Ghanaian striker Yusif Yakubu and Nigerian ND Opara virtually toyed with Churchill defence, but the home team was unlucky.
Opara, in particular, had four clear chances, but all went waste thanks to remarkable piece of goalkeeping from Churchill custodian Sandip Nandy, who was adjudged Most Valuable Player.
At the start of the second half, the game was stopped when Roberto Silva injured his fingers during a tackle with Mumbai skipper Haroon Fakruddin Amiri.
The Brazilian was taken out in an ambulance.
Though Churchill began on a bright note, Mumbai caught up with them soon after. Mumbai goalkeeper Luis Barreto was hardly tested by the Churchill Brothers strikers.
After Beto was taken out in ambulance, substitute Akram Moghrabi gave the Goan team the only real chance when he turned and unleashed a powerful shot from outside the box, but Barreto was quick to palm it out for a corner.
