ISL | ATK Mohun Bagan dents HFC’s chances

Draw leaves the Hyderabad team with a must-win last game

February 22, 2021 10:28 pm | Updated 10:28 pm IST

Surging ahead:  HFC’s  Santana, left, who got the first goal, tries to get past  Jhingan of ATKMB.

Surging ahead: HFC’s Santana, left, who got the first goal, tries to get past Jhingan of ATKMB.

Hyderabad FC (HFC), which lost a man early, showed great character and application to draw with table-topper ATK Mohun Bagan (ATKMB) 2-2 in a 19th round ISL match at the Tilak Maidan Stadium in Vasco on Monday.

In what turned out to be a see-saw contest, Hyderabad took the lead in the eighth minute though an opportunistic goal from Aridane Santana before Manvir Singh levelled for ATKMB after the break. Substitute Roland Alberg put Hyderabad back in front midway through the second half but an added-time goal by Bagan defender Pritam Kotal ended the former’s hopes of a win.

Early setback

A red card and goal described the opening half as Hyderabad tried to establish its dominance over the current leader. Hyderabad lost Chinglensana Singh in the fourth minute after the defender brought down Bagan forward David Williams, who was looking to get in a threatening position.

HFC was quick to regroup and, despite the deficit in numbers, took the fight to Mohun Bagan. Hyderabad was in the lead in the eighth minute as Mohun Bagan’s defence crumbled under some resolute attacking. A horrible misunderstanding between right-back Kotal and centre-back Tiri saw the HFC captain Aridane lapping up a free ball and placing it without hesitation in the far corner of the Mohun Bagan goal.

Stunned by the reverse, Mohun Bagan tried to get the equaliser but had to wait till the 57th minute when Manvir found the target with a nice finish.

Hyderabad regained the lead off a fantastic volley from Alberg in the 75th minute before Mohun Bagan produced yet another last gasp goal to spoil HFC’s party.

The result: Hyderabad FC 2 (Aridane Santana 8, Roland Alberg 75) drew with ATK Mohun Bagan (Manvir Singh 57, Pritam Kotal 90+2).

Tuesday’s match: SC East Bengal v NorthEast United, 7.30 p.m .

0 / 0
Sign in to unlock member-only benefits!
  • Access 10 free stories every month
  • Save stories to read later
  • Access to comment on every story
  • Sign-up/manage your newsletter subscriptions with a single click
  • Get notified by email for early access to discounts & offers on our products
Sign in

Comments

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.

We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of The Hindu and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.