ATK Mohun Bagan made a proper statement by scripting a beautiful comeback in the second half scoring thrice in a four-goal thriller against Maziya S&R.
ATK Mohun Bagan walked into the game with just three foreigners on the starting sheet. Boumous was probably kept out on purpose having faced some minor niggle in the previous game.
Maziya started the proceedings with their opener, credits to the sublime passing and exquisite finish by Aisam Ibrahim just before the 30 minute mark. The Maldivian side were quite comfortable riding over their 1-0 lead as they headed into the half time break, but it was definitely not enough to tame the Mariners!
ATK Mohun Bagan kept on getting at the opposition defense which finally opened up with Ashutosh Mehta’s perfect cross which was translated into the leveling goal by Liston’s acrobatic finish. The Halftime substitutions culminated into fruition as Coach Habas’ men started to aim for another 3 points, making their case stronger for the semi finals.
The Impact-man Hugo Boumous took no time to leave his mark after getting subbed on in place of Williams. His impressive run towards the box gave ATK Mohun Bagan their second goal with Roy Krishna getting at the end of the ball and doing what he does the best.
What followed was absolute dominance by ATK Mohun Bagan. Hugo Boumous served another brilliant cross to Manvir and the Indian striker made this opportunity count. A textbook finish gave Mariners their third goal. While on one end the ATKMB attack was leaving Maziya’s defense in sixes and sevens, on the other their defense was standing tall spearheaded by Captain Pritam Kotal. Amrinder Singh chipped in with a few impressive blocks and saves as well.
Overall ATK Mohun Bagan put up a great show last night and now they are edging closer than ever to the penultimate stages of the tournament. With only one final group stage game left to decide their fate, it will be riveting to witness the Mariners write a new chapter for Indian football at the continental stage.
The Kolkata based side will now face Bashundhara Kings who are reigning champions of Bangladesh on 24th August at 4:30 pm (IST).
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