Roy Krishna is an ATK target for Mohun Bagan however from time to time, his good friend David Williams removes the pressure on Fijians. As he did to Malen on Tuesday; Williams’ ATK Mohun Bagan equalizer kept the Basundhara Kings 1-1 and ready for the AFC Cup semi-final as the South Asian Zone champions.
With two wins and draws, ATK Mohun Bagan finished the group stage with seven features, two of which are bigger than the Kings. This is the first time since 2018 that a team of Indian workers have made it to the semi-finals where Bagan will play the winners of Nasaf of Uzbekistan and Ahal of Turkmenistan on September 22.
With the exception of suspended Hugo Boumous, Bagan has made it clear that the burden could be on the Kings, the D sports team that must overcome it, to take action. The former did not press and when Bagan held the ball, he could not be made much out of place where Liston Colaco or Manvir Singh could try to run in the Kings defense. It worked hard and Colaco found himself in the middle of the state after Carl McHugh kicked free and came here using Krishna. Colaco passed one participant but was delayed and land was confiscated.
Bagan then pulled the pressure spell by failing to adjust their pressure following a free kick from Robinho, with Kings scoring goals on the left front from Brazil. Subhasish Bose’s crucial block and a header from McHugh eventually helped them clear the ball and as soon as it seemed that the Kings would add pressure, Colaco almost became a stalwart.
This time it was not a long-drawn ball but a clever ball from Krishna entered the house which was collected by Williams. The Australian midfielder turned into a trick after another one took the Kings defenders with him before setting it up for Colaco. With the internet empty due to a goal Anisur Rahman Zico was also out of place, Colaco ran and dragged his shotgun in the 18th minute. Shortly afterwards, Colaco stepped in from the left and brought in Manvir Singh who set Krishna his last volley. ATK Mohun Bagan came here and closed it again, removing a free kick from Colaco which was later distributed to McHugh who hit it with Krishna. Fijians can only suppress protected corner kicks.
And then, almost nothing, Kings go forward. Brazilian midfielders Fernand and Robinho formed a tag team on the right edge of Bagan’s penalty space. Lenny Rodrigues first and then Williams hesitated to seek the matter with Fernandes, a former Botafogo player who had seven goals and 13 assistants in the Bangladesh Premier League which ended earlier this month, beating Amrinder Singh just before he left the ground.
The last time ATK Mohun Bagan came straight into a match that needed a draw – and also a distance between the 2022 AFC Champions League – was badly reserved for Mumbai City FC. This was also the second video game series of their first Asian game ever to be followed.
Krishna and Williams went into the tie, the latter holding a strong striker, however what made the game was the Kings ’great fit Sushanto Tripura backed Bose and surprisingly was given a red card. The fact that Amakhosi had four yellow players – they finished at 5, three bigger than ATK Mohun Bagan – in the first half was evidence of dangerous play and physical challenges. “They saw a red card because of the way they played. That’s why during the break I told the team to stick to what they were doing, ”said ATK Mohun Bagan coach Antonio Lopez Habas.
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Now the Kings had to defend their leadership by a gentle participant. In the 62nd minute, their resistance fell. Colaco found the house at the bottom left – the Tripura area can be guarded on the left and Bishwanath Ghosh – cut and made for Williams who lived peacefully. Williams may have found the winner but fired a shot after Zico saved his first try from a distance just to get Krishna looking for him on the ball.
While Amakhosi made a last-ditch effort to find another goal – they will lose things against Bengaluru FC and therefore want to win – ATK Mohun Bagan ended the game the way they started, by getting men behind the ball. This time alone, it was a huge exercise. But blocking Robinho’s effort from a distance where Singh wasted earlier than the collection in the 83rd minute, there was not much from the Kings that bothered the Habas men.
“We got better chances and we controlled the game. The afternoon game was tough due to the heat and humidity but we didn’t have much experience on the bench so switching was difficult. I am proud of my team skills and I am happy to graduate after only 20 days of training, ”said Habas.