Mumbai City FC scripted history after becoming the first-ever Indian club to win in the AFC Champions League. They came from a goal down to beat Air Force Club by 2-1 at the King Fahd Stadium in Riyadh.ย Diego Mauricio’s penalty cancelled Air Force Club’s lead before local boy Rahul Bheke scored a winner in the 75th minute.ย
๐ง๐๐๐ง ๐ฆ๐จ๐ฅ๐ฅ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐ก๐ ๐คฉ๐#AFCvMUM #IslandersInAsia #ACL2022 #AamchiCity ๐ต pic.twitter.com/vqqQchVsbb
— Mumbai City FC (@MumbaiCityFC) April 11, 2022
Mumbai City lost their first game to Al Shabab by 0-3. They qualified for the tournament after winning the Indian Super League in 2020-21.
Des Buckingham, the head coach, was elated after the victory, and stressed that the team should stay focussed for the upcoming games.
The first Indian goalscorer in AFC Champions League history – ๐ฅ๐ฎ๐ต๐๐น ๐๐ต๐ฒ๐ธ๐ฒ! ๐ฎ๐ณ
Here's what last night's Man of the Match had to say after his historic winner ๐ Air Force Club ๐ฃ๏ธ#AFCvMUM #IslandersInAsia #ACL2022 #AamchiCity ๐ต @RahulBheke pic.twitter.com/nvVfVwPL7C
— Mumbai City FC (@MumbaiCityFC) April 12, 2022
“There’s a range of emotions (that we’re going through). We knew coming into the tournament how tough it was going to be. The league we come from is only seven seasons old. We’re only the second club from the country to make it into the Champions League,” said Buckingham in the press conference.
Following last night's memorable victory in Riyadh, @DesBuckingham & the Man of the Match @RahulBheke addressed the post-match press duties ๐ฝ๏ธ
Listen in to what they had to share ๐ฃ๏ธ#AFCvMUM #IslandersInAsia #ACL2022 #AamchiCity ๐ต pic.twitter.com/F05tipUHaY
— Mumbai City FC (@MumbaiCityFC) April 12, 2022
”It’s something the players and the staff have been striving to achieve and we got there in the end. Now it’s important to refocus as we have four more important games to go. We’ve got to see what we can achieve in those four games,” Buckingham added.
With one win and as many defeats, Mumbai City FC is positioned second in the points table. Their next will be against the bottom-placed UAE’s Al Jazira Club.
๐จFT | ๐ฎ๐ถ Air Force Club 1๏ธโฃ- 2๏ธโฃ Mumbai City FC ๐ฎ๐ณ
HISTORIC. The Islanders become the first-ever ๐ฎ๐ณ Indian Club to win an #ACL match. Rahul Bheke, a local Mumbai lad, sweetened the night by scoring the winner ๐ฅ#ACL2022 | #AFCvMUM pic.twitter.com/wy3KAZapiQ
— #ACL2022 (@TheAFCCL) April 11, 2022
