ISL 2024-25: Petr Kratky hails players after fighting draw against Mohun Bagan Super Giant

Mumbai City FC head coach Petr Kratky lauded his players after a fighting 2-2 draw against Mohun Bagan Super Giant at the Mumbai Football Arena, Mumbai in the ongoing Indian Super League on Saturday.

Jamie Maclaren scored the opening goal for the visitors in the 32nd minute. Soon after, Dimitri Petratos doubled his team’s lead in the 41st minute. 

After the first half break, Jon Miquel Toral Harper got one back for the Islanders but the home team was reduced to 10 men after Vikram Partap Singh received a second yellow card in the 58th minute. However, against the odds, Nathan Rodrigues equalized for the hosts in the 87th minute.

“The most important thing is the reaction of the team, and we reacted very well. So, we make a strategy when we have one man down, and they (the players) stick to it, and they work very hard. They worked extremely hard,” Kratky said in the post-match press conference.

“We just have to keep moving forward. You know, don’t get stuck on it and find excuses. We need to find solutions, and we did that with the 10 men today,” he added.

In the opening match of the season, Mumbai City had played a 2-2 draw against Mohun Bagan Super Giant while playing away in Kolkata. The Mariners have registered 14 clean sheets in the ongoing season and Kratky was delighted with his players’ performance.

“We knew Mohun Bagan SG had 14 clean sheets for a reason. They are very good at defending. They are very effective in the final third. They have very good strikers. You can see, you give them one chance, they score a goal. That’s why they are powerful. We have to focus on how we can beat that,” he stated.

“We played two games against them. We scored four goals against a very good defending team. We have to build on that. Positivity thinking. We can score goals. Again, today, set pieces helped us a lot to get over the line with the goals. It’s a complete performance. Especially the second half for a team with ten men. I’m very, very happy about it,” he continued.

Mumbai City FC will next take on Kerala Blasters FC at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, Kochi on Friday.