Kerala Blasters FC had a night to forget in Mumbai as they were thumped 4-0 by league leaders Mumbai City FC in a Hero Indian Super League (ISL) match at the Mumbai Football Arena on Sunday. 

A brace from former Kerala Blasters FC man Jorge Pereyra Diaz and goals from Bipin Singh and Greg Stewart all in the space of 22 first-half minutes blew the Blasters away, a blow from which they could never recover on the night. 

Coming into the match on the back of an eight-match unbeaten streak, it was a disappointing night for Ivan Vukomanovic’s team who enjoyed great support from their fans once again. 

Despite it being an away match, almost half of the stadium was filled with Kerala Blasters FC fans who made it a point to cheer every tackle the team made albeit in a losing cause. 

Defender Victor Mongil who came into the team in place of Marko Leskovic assured the fans that the team will try to bring the smiles back on their faces. 

“It was amazing. Obviously, at our home their support is excellent but when we play away the fans support us so well. Today half of the fans in Mumbai’s stadium were supporting us,” Mongil told indiansuperleague.com in an exclusive interview after the match. 

“We have the best fans in the Hero ISL. Hopefully, we achieve our objectives and give them a reason to smile,” he added. 

The Spanish defender though was disappointed with the team’s performance in the first-half of the match and felt it was a big lesson learnt for his team. 

“Everyone is thinking that how is it possible to concede four goals in 22 minutes? But it's football. Against these teams, if you don't stay switched on, they can kill you,” Mongil said. 

“We are Kerala Blasters FC and the plan was to impose our skills on the match. But Mumbai City FC is also a good team and the first 25 minutes killed us. We need to learn from our mistakes and continue to work,” he added. 

Kerala Blasters FC head into a 14-day break before they return to take on FC Goa on January 22 and the Spaniard believes that it will be important for his team to have a response to the heavy defeat in Mumbai. 

“Football always gives you an opportunity in the next match. We need to continue focussing on our objectives,” he said. 

“The atmosphere in this team is amazing. Everyone helps each other, stays focussed in our way, everybody knows and everybody can play. We still want to try and finish in the first position,” he added. 

Mongil was also full of praise for the Indian players at Kerala Blasters FC adding that the team was lucky to have such talent at their disposal. 

“We are lucky because we have good future Indian stars. The most important thing for them is they believe in themselves. They improve after they make mistakes. We have a very good staff to teach everything and our Indian players have an amazing future,” he concluded.