ISL 2018-19: League reaches 900 goals thanks to Jamshedpur FC's Mario Arques

What's the story?

The Indian Super League (ISL) achieved a milestone on Sunday when Mario Arques of Jamshedpur FC scored the ISL's 900th goal against ATK.

The ISL has consistently crossed 100 goals in each season and the number only increased when the league expanded to 10 teams from eight.

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Heart of the matter

Manuel Lanzarote struck two fantastic goals off set-pieces for ATK in the first half before Arques pulled one back for Jamshedpur in the 82nd minute during their league match at the Salt Lake Stadium.

Arques' header didn't exactly guarantee the 3 points for Jamshedpur, but it turns out that he has helped the ISL achieve a milestone in its fifth season.

Adria Carmona of Delhi Dynamos scored the ISL's 800th goal earlier this season in the 2-2 draw against Jamshedpur FC on November 4, 2018.

Landmark goals in #HeroISL1 - Fikru Teffera50 - Luis Garcia100 - Romeo Fernandes 200 - Iain Hume 300 - Joffre Gonzalez 400 - Kean Lewis 500 - Danilo Lopez 600 - Kalu Uche 700 - Emiliano Alfaro800 - Adria Carmona900 - Mario Arques6/11 in winning causes!@AnalystAdi👍🏻🙌

— Anant Tyagi (@anant174) February 4, 2019

The 600th and 700th goals came in the previous seasons of the ISL. While Emiliano Alfaro (formerly FC Pune City) struck the 700th, Uche had scored the 600th. Uche currently plays for ATK but the 600th ISL goal came during his time with Delhi Dynamos.

Fikru Teferra scored the ISL's first goal in the match between Atletico de Kolkata and Mumbai City FC on October 12, 2014, in the inaugural season. In the same season, Luis Garcia scored the league's 50th goal against NorthEast United.

Like Arques' strike for Jamshedpur against ATK, four other milestone goals have come in a losing cause.

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In case you didn't know

The ISL has seen 270 goalscorers with Ferran Corominas of FC Goa accounting for the most goals - 29. Iain Hume of FC Pune City has accumulated 28 in 64 matches during his stints with Kerala Blasters and ATK as well.

No goalkeeper has scored a goal in the ISL so far.

The first three seasons of the ISL was an eight-team affair with the top four making the semifinals. This structure led to a lot of goalless draws, where teams were just looking to somehow squeeze into the top four by splitting points and then bringing on their A game in the two-legged semifinals.

The expansion to 10 teams has certainly helped the ISL achieve the milestone in its fifth season. But most teams continue to just target a top-four finish in the league stages.