Super Cup: Rajasthan United eyeing miracle, Kerala Blasters, Mumbai City on collision course as Group D heads to climax

Rajasthan United may have been undone late in the second half against Kerala Blasters, but against Mumbai City FC it showed exactly why it had brought Vikrant Sharma back as head coach.

Vikrant had helped Rajasthan earn I-League promotion in 2021, and under his coaching the team defeated the Islanders, the 2023-24 Indian Super League (ISL) Cup champions.

Against Sporting Club Delhi, the team will look to register a similar victory, albeit with a bigger winning margin, to earn a chance in the last four of the AIFF Super Cup, at the GMC Athletic Stadium in Bambolim.

Colombian number 9 Robinson Blandon will be Rajasthan’s target for goals, while Pangambam Naoba Meitei will be on Delhi’s radar for his spirited runs down the flanks – one that eventually led to Rajasthan’s winning goal in the previous match.

But the permutations are hardly in his favor, with Mumbai City FC facing Kerala Blasters in the other group stage match later in the day at the Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Margao.

Rajasthan will have to win by at least four goals and expect the Blasters to lose 0-1. Only then can the I-League team pull off a miracle.

In the other match, a menacing Blasters charge travels to Fatorda for the final round after beating Delhi in the previous match. The last match between the teams ended in a 1-0 win for the Blasters, delaying Mumbai City’s qualification for last season’s ISL play-offs.

The goalscorer of that match – Kwame Peprah – has left the club, but the new attack, led by Spaniard Koldo Obieta, looked extremely dangerous at half-time. Two of his three goals came from counter-attacks.

Blasters’ coach David Catala could try new signing Tiago Alves on Obieta’s left, with Noah Sadaoui failing to impress in his first Super Cup start against Delhi. Nihal Suheesh and Korou Singh Thingujam are likely to continue along the right flank.

For the Blasters, the current table toppers, the qualification criterion is simple: anything other than a loss is enough.

Meanwhile, Mumbai City’s clearest route to the semi-finals would be to beat the Blasters by two goals. Petr Kratky’s side remained frustrated for most of the match against Rajasthan, with Jorge Pereyra Diaz and Jorge Ortiz in the final third.

Kratky’s decision to switch the goalkeeper from Phurba Lachenpa to TP Rehenesh in the previous match also cost the side dearly, with the Czech likely to return to the 2023/24 ISL Golden Glove winner.

Mumbai City may be missing some key players – Lalengmawia (Apuia) Ralte and captain Rahul Bheke – from that victorious 2023/24 season, but Lallianzuala Chhangte, Ortiz and Pereyra Diaz have enough strength to find a way.

However, Kratky will be careful not to deploy a wider formation like 4-4-2, a formation that was exploited with authority by Rajasthan last time.

Published on November 5, 2025