Welcome to Sportstar's ISL 2020-21 blog of match between Bengaluru FC and ATK Mohun Bagan from the Fatorda Stadium.
That's all we have for the night. We will be back again tomorrow when Chennaiyin FC takes on Jamshedpur FC. Until then, you can follow our entire ISL 2020-21 coverage here . Good night!
MATCH REPORT |
ATKMB manager, Antonio Habas: Absolutely . We played a solid match. We have a good feeling for the rest of the matches. We are improving every day and we have an opportunity to improve. It was a maybe complete performance. We have to think only about the next match, not thinking about the future.
Bengaluru FC manager, Naushad Moosa: We started so well in the first 30 minutes,but post that first goal we lost focus. We might have to do that[blood in youngsters in the coming games]. I have that option.As far as coach is concerned, I have no idea about it. [On whether the loss has hampered their top four chances] Let us be more realistic, it is.
Bengaluru suffer their first defeat in five matches, but ATKMB deserved their three points on the night. The Sunil Chhetri-led side began the game on a positive note, dominating possession, but it was ATKMB who got the early chances in the first half. ATKMB moves within a point of table-topper Mumbai City FC. ISL 2020: Points Table
They took the lead after Pratik Chaudhari brought down Roy Krishna inside the box at the 35th minute mark. Krishna stood up to take the penalty and comfortably converted from the spot to score his 12th goal of the season and give side a 1-0 lead.
With a few minutes to go for the end of the half, ATKMB got a chance to double their lead and Marcelinho did so, with a curling free kick, shot in at pace, which proved to be too good for Gurpreet.
ATKMB carried that confidence into the second half and dominated proceedings from the word-go. Gurpreet made a few good saves to prevent his side from going down by a bigger margin, but ATKMB took home the three points.
Bengaluru 0-2 ATKMB
94' The referee blows the final whistle and it is ATKMB, who has prevailed in this contest 2-0 over Bengaluru FC.
Dying moments of a game, that has been dominated by ATKMB. They will cut the gap to one point from Mumbai City FC from the looks of it.
91' Chhetri is booked for arguing with the referee.
4 minutes of added time.
Bengaluru make a third change as Amay Morajkar replaces Suresh Wangjam. ATKMB also make a third change as Manvir is replaced by Komal Thatal.
87' First chance for Bengaluru in the second half and it comes from Chhetri, who fires in a shot from his right foot that is saved by Arindam.
83' Another change for ATKMB. Jayesh Rane comes on for David Williams
82' CHANCE FOR ATKMB. Hernandez makes an almost immediate impact, curling in a free kick and Krishna heads a low ball, just wide.
Into the final 10 minutes of regulation time. ATKMB still with a 2-0 lead in their favour.
80' CHANGE FOR ATKMB: Javier Hernandez replaces Marcelinho, who has had yet another excellent game for ATKMB. Scored the second goal at the end of the first half with a lovely free-kick.
Bengaluru in need for some late inspiration here to salvage something from this match. ATKMB have no worries of that kind at the minute.
Time for a drinks break.
71' Krishna fires in a shot that flies over everyone. ATKMB are in a position to try and go for more goals in this fixture.
No clear chances yet for Bengaluru in this half with just over 20 minutes of regulation time left on the clock.
64' Rodrigues is down after a challenge from Chhetri, but play continues. He gets some treatment on the pitch.
62' Rahul Bheke is down and seems to have injured his hamstring. He is walking away from the pitch for treatment. He is replaced by Parag Srivas in defence.
58' CHANCE for ATKMB. Great play from Krishna, who puts in a fine ball to Manvir Singh, who fires in a shot off his right foot that is saved by Gurpeet Singh Sandhu.
CHANGE FOR BENGALURU: Xisco comes on for Kristian Opseth
55' CORNER FOR ATKMB. Marcelinho takes it, but nothing of note comes out of it.
Xisco Hernandez is getting ready to come on, from the looks of it. Bengaluru needs a bit of magic to get something out of this match.
Contrary to the first half, ATKMB have begun the second half with more confidence.
48' CORNER FOR ATKMB. Williams takes it and it leads to a CHANCE for ATKMB. Sandesh Jhingan fires in a shot with his right foot that is superbly saved by Gurpeet Singh Sandhu!
TIME FOR THE SECOND HALF!!!
There could be more trouble coming up for Bengaluru in the second half as ATKMB has scored 82 per cent of its goals in the second half this season.
The start of the half saw Bengaluru FC dominate possession, but it was ATKMB who found the better chances to open the scoring. With just under ten minutes to go for the completion of the half, Pratik Chaudhari brought Roy Krishna down inside the box and Krishna netted in his 12th goal of the season with a comfortable penalty.
A few minutes later, Marcelinho made it 2-0 with a terrific left foot free kick and give his side complete control of the game, going into the break.
HALF-TIME.
Two minutes of added time.
45' GOOOALLLLLLLL. Marcelinho makes it 2-0 for ATKMB with a free kick off his left foot. Gurpreet gave it his all ,but the ball was too quick for him and landed at the back end of the net. ATKMB in complete command of proceedings now.
43' Khabra is booked for a challenge on Williams. Was that yet another penalty, though? Does look really close
42' Prabir Das is down after a challenge from Erik Paartalu that gives yet another free kick for ATKMB.
41' FREE KICK for ATKMB after Chhetri commits a foul on the edge of the penalty area. Marcelinho whips it in, but it is cleared away
36' GOAL! Krishana fires in the shot, Gurpreet goes the wrong way and it is an easy goal for the ATKMB striker, which gives his side a 1 -0 lead with just under 10 minutes to go for the end of the first half.
35' PENALTY TO ATKMB. Pratik Chaudhari fouls Roy Krishna inside the box and there is no doubting the decision from the referee.
The Bengaluru players and the referee are in argument. It is over and the game is back on.
32' CORNER FOR ATKMB. Marcelinho takes it, Gurpreet pushes it away with his right hand.
Bengaluru has had most of the possession in the game so far, but it has been ATKMB who has had the better chances of taking the lead. Still 0-0 at Fatorda.
Time for a drinks break..
29' CHANCE!. Carl McGugh fires in a shot with his left foot, but Gurpreet Singh Sandhu gets a hand on it that pushes the ball over. Big chance for ATKMB.
28' Yet another FREE KICK to Bengaluru. Opseth shoots it in with his left foot, the ball comes in low but nothing significant comes out of it again.
27' Both teams exchanging possession, but struggling to make the most of it thanks to the lack of space available on the pitch.
23' FOUL on Khabra and Bengaluru have yet another FREE KICK . Opseth takes it, but Williams clears it away.
21' Another FREE KICK FOR BENGALURU. ATKMB are steadily growing into the game, but are unable to breakdown the Benglauru defence, who have looked good thus far.
18' FREE KICK FOR BENGALURU. Directed towards Chhetri on the left wing, however, nothing conclusive comes out of it as ATKMB grab possession.
17' CHANCE! Roy Krishna, on side, fires a shot on target from a one-on-one position. Gurpreet fumbles the ball, but no damage done.
15' Bengaluru continue to has large chunk of possession. ATKMB trying to press forward, but Bengaluru has remained compact across the length of the pitch.
10' Bengaluru continue to impress. Paartalu gives the ball to Khabra, who fires in a shot that goes well above the goalkeeper.
8' Udanta sprints away on the wing, puts a cross in and it is cleared away by an ATMKMB player, giving Bengaluru a corner.
7' CHANCE! Marcelinho makes the first chance of the game. Cuts in and drives the ball of his left foot but it lands straight at the hands of Gurpreet Singh Sandhu.
6' Bengaluru have looked the more confident outfit so far, but neither teams made got made any clear cut chances.
3' Bengaluru keeping possession in early stages of the contest.
1' KICK OFF: BFC start proceedings in the game
7:25pm: The players are walking out to the middle.. Bengaluru is in their green kit while ATK Mohun Bagan is in their white kit.
7:15pm: A win for Bengaluru will keep them in sixth place, but close the gap on fourth-placed Hyderabad FC to one point. A victory for ATK Mohun Bagan will keep them in second place, but cut the gap between them and top-placed Mumbai City FC to one point.
6:55pm: Bengaluru has made two changes to the team that drew against Chennayin FC. Rahul Bheke is back from suspension to bolster the defence and he comes in for Parag Srivas and Norwegian striker Kristian Opseth comes in for Cleiton Silva and will pair alongside captain Sunil Chhetri.
For ATK Mohun Bagan, Antonio Habas makes three changes to the team that beat Odisha FC in the last game. Prabir Das comes in for Pritam Kotal, Carl McHugh comes in for Pronay Halder and David Williams replaces Javier Hernandez.
6:40 pm: The playing XIs for both teams is out
Bengaluru FC (4-4-2): Gurpreet Singh Sandhu; Harmanjot Khabra, Francisco Gonzalez, Pratik Chaudhari, Rahul Bheke; Udanta Singh, Erik Paartalu, Suresh Wangjam, Ajith Kumar; Sunil Chhetri, Kristian Opseth.
ATK Mohun Bagan (4-3-1-2): Arindam Bhattacharja; Prabir Das, Sandesh Jhingan, Tiri, Subhasish Bose; Manvir Singh, Lenny Rodrigues, Carl McHugh; Manvir Singh, Marcelo Pereira; David Williams, Roy Krishna.
6:00pm: Here's how the two teams could line-up on the night.
Bengaluru FC predicted XI (4-4-2)
Gurpreet Singh Sandhu; Harmanjot Khabra, Francisco Gonzalez, Pratik Chaudhari, Rahul Bheke; Xisco Hernandez, Erik Paartalu, Suresh Wangjam, Parag Shrivas; Sunil Chhetri, Cleiton Silva
ATK Mohun Bagan predicted XI (4-4-2)
Arindam Bhattacharja; Pritam Kotal, Sandesh Jhingan, Tiri, Subhasish Bose; Manvir Singh, Lenny Rodrigues, Pronay Halder, Javier Hernandez; Marcelinho, Roy Krishna.
5:45pm:Podcast - The merger between ATK and Mohun Bagan for ISL 2020-21 seemed like a match made in heaven, but fans didn't look pleased. Our reporters Shyam Vasudevan, Aashin Prasad and Amitabha Das Sharma delve into the reasons behind fans' displeasure and the raging hashtag #RemoveATK in the latest episode of 'The Full Time Show'.
Follow Sportstar's full coverage (Latest news, Interviews, Features, Points table, Quiz, Videos) of ISL 2020-21 .
The seventh edition of the Indian Super League got underway inside a bio-bubble in Goa on November 20.
The tournament, spanning over four months, will see 11 teams play each other in a league and playoff format across three venues. Following the inclusion of SC East Bengal, this season will feature 115 games, up from 95 last season.
MATCH PREVIEW:
ATK Mohun Bagan (ATKMB) will look to pull within one point of leader Mumbai City FC when it meets Bengaluru FC (BFC) at the Fatorda Stadium in Goa on Tuesday. Mumbai could only manage a 3-3 draw against FC Goa on Monday, meaning Antonio Habas’ men can move up to 33 points with a win over BFC (19 points).
ATKMB is high on confidence, having rediscovered its mojo by winning back-to-back matches – against Kerala Blasters and Odisha FC – for the first time since mid-December. Roy Krishna is back among the goals, scoring four times in the last three matches.
So is Manvir Singh, who accounted for a brace against Odisha, including a stunning left-footer that sailed into the top corner. Marcelinho’s signing has added spark to the ATKMB attack, helping the side score seven goals in the last two matches.
READ|
To keep such strike-force at bay, BFC will have to defend a lot better than it did against Chennaiyin FC in the previous match. Naushad Moosa’s wards were fortunate to escape with a goalless draw after having allowed Chennaiyin no less than half-a-dozen clear-cut chances.
Rahul Bheke’s return from suspension should help shore up the backline as BFC continues its chase for a top-four place, which is now two spots and four points away.
READ|
“Mohun Bagan have been scoring after conceding also. So, we have to be more compact,” said Moosa on match-eve. “It won’t be an easy match but the way we are playing, hopefully, we can give them a tough fight. We have not conceded goals in the last two matches. That’s a positive. First [priority] is not to concede goals and [then] we can score any time. So, anything can happen.”
But BFC is sweating on forward Cleiton Silva’s fitness. The Brazilian, one of the consistent performers this season, has a hamstring issue, the extent of which will be known only on match-day morning after an MRI scan.
On the other hand, Habas will welcome Carl McHugh from suspension. Lenny Rodrigues, who played his first match after his move from FC Goa, against Odisha FC, should keep his place with fellow mid-fielder Pronay Halder out after picking up four yellow cards.
“The target is to be in the play-offs mathematically,” Habas said. “After that we are thinking about the first position in the regular league, after that the semi-finals and after that the final, if possible. It [top of the league finish] also depends on Mumbai losing some matches but we have to go match by match and we are not thinking too far ahead.”
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