Atletico de Kolkata’s task clearly cut out ahead of tie against Pune City
Atlético de Kolkata head into their fixture with FC Pune City somewhat on a revenge mission, a mission they never thought they would need to desperately salvage full points. Pune had marched into the fortress that is the Salt Lake Stadium and staged a performance that seemed unlikely, beating the hosts 3-1.
Rank outsiders, Pune went into the half with a lead which they soon doubled thanks to their Greek World Cupper Kostas Katsouranis. Fikru Teferra got one back for the home side but Davide Colomba finished things off to stun the home crowd and inflict Kolkata’s only defeat in front of their own supporters and then their first defeat of the campaign in the Hero Indian Super League (ISL).
“We came here with great determination. We wanted to win. We have got three points, so we can go home happy,” said Pune striker Dudu Omagbemi after their famous win.
Without their star striker and captain David Trezeguet, that win was even more special for Pune with their stand-in captain Bruno Cirillo praising the team and their coach, Franco Colomba. “This proves we have a good team. We have many good players. We are very happy as a family.”
Fast forward a few weeks and Pune are without a win since their drubbing of the Kolkata club, losing two of their last four fixtures. They have, however, added the pace and fire power of the English winger Jermaine Pennant to their squad.
“I’ve adapted quite easy and I’m happy with my game and we just need to operate all around the pitch,” he said. Pune need their players to step up and prove that the result in Kolkata wasn’t a one off as they are just a win away from entering the knockout phase.
Kolkata, on the other hand, are not just looking to exact revenge but also will look to chase the new league leaders Chennaiyin FC and reclaim that No. 1 spot in the ISL standings, which for a long time belonged to them. With Jofre in their side, the Spaniard has made the highest number of crosses in the league and with Fikru and star striker Luis Garcia to put those crosses away, Kolkata go into the match high on confidence.
Kolkata have won only one of their last six after going on a run where they were undefeated in their first six games, but captain Garcia sees this as a minor bump. “The only thing is that we have to find a way to score more goals and start winning again, but the real concern would have been if we weren’t able to create chances.” The team can echo Garcia’s words and under Antonio Habas, Kolkata’s coach, will surely have to pull up their sleeves to achieve that end.