Jamshedpur FC vs ATK Mohun Bagan- 4 things we learned
Match no. 20 of the Indian Super League (ISL) saw Jamshedpur FC take on ATK Mohun Bagan at the Athletic Stadium in Bambolim. The team from the City of Steel came out on top, winning 2-1.
Jamshedpur FC were looking to get back to winning ways after sharing points with Hyderabad FC in their last outing in the ISL. Meanwhile, ATK Mohun Bagan, after an embarrassing defeat against Mumbai City FC, saw the encounter as an opportunity to bounce back.
Right from the first whistle, Jamshedpur FC looked like the brighter side. Meanwhile, ATK Mohun Bagan looked like a nervy side trying to re-establish themselves. Seiminlen Doungel opened the scoring for Jamshedpur FC in the first half followed by Alexandre Lima's goal in the 84th minute. Pritam Kotal scored the consolation goal for the Mariners.
Let's take a look at the four things we learned from this game:
#4 ATK Mohun Bagan have not changed too much fundamentally
Kolkata-based club ATK Mohun Bagan have not changed too much fundamentally to suit the needs of the occasion. It has been the same since their thumping defeat against Mumbai City FC. The team was majorly dependent on three players. These include Roy Krishna for his lethal instincts in the box, Hugo Boumous for his creativity and Joni Kauko for being able to carry the ball.
The Islanders took advantage of ATK Mohun Bagan's deployment of a single winger for both offensive and defensive duties. The winger usually looked isolated in the side and positional overload caused them to look inferior.
The case was similar against Jamshedpur FC as well. Subhasish Bose was deployed as a left wing-back, a player who is usually slow and has trouble tracking back. Owen Coyle used this to his advantage. The same thing happened with a rusty Ashutosh Mehta. He looked slow from the start and was not able to adapt to the scenarios completely.
#3 Jamshedpur FC's defensive compactness
Peter Hartley and Eli Sabia led the proceedings at the back for Jamshedpur FC. The Jamshedpur FC captain was vocal when he needed the team to keep their defensive shape. His aerial ability prohibited ATK Mohun Bagan from making any advancements in the box.
Defensive midfielders Pronay Halder and Jitendra Singh were rock solid playing as a double pivot in the center of midfield. They made sure the Mariners found it difficult to progress the ball further towards the final third.
#2 Valskis & Stewart vs Krishna & Boumous
Jamshedpur FC's strike partnership between Nerijus Valskis and Greg Stewart looked much more efficient compared to their counterparts. They were the Green and Maroons' Roy Krishna and Hugo Boumous.
The Jamshedpur FC attacking duo created havoc for the ATK Mohun Bagan defenders throughout the entirety of the game. They were efficient in dropping deep and spreading the ball to their teammates exposing spaces behind the Mariners' defense.
However, Boumous and Krishna failed to have a similar effect for their team. Jamshedpur FC defenders found it easy to deal with them.
#1 ATK Mohun Bagan's lack of comfortability in possession
One of the most visible aspects of the ATK Mohun Bagan is their lack of comfort in possession. This is not something new in an Antonio Lopez Habas side.
There are very few occasions in which one can witness the Mariners passing the ball around to create a scoring chance. The side barely managed to string more than a certain number of passes during any move. They easily lost possession when pressed by opposition defenders.