NorthEast United FC took revenge from ATK Mohun Bagan in their second close encounter which ended with a score of 2-1. The 72nd match of the Indian Super League (ISL) was played at Fatorda Stadium, Goa, on a Tuesday which coincided with the 72nd Republic Day of India i.e. 26th January 2021.
ATK Mohun Bagan came with the same discipline in the match but the turn of events made them lose 3 points. The mariners are still at the 2nd position in the league table with 24 points in 13 games.
NorthEast United FC is now bringing back their A-game as they started the season. The Highlanders have managed to get on to winning ways and have grabbed 2 back-to-back wins. Now the Highlanders are at 5th position in the league table with 18 points after playing 13 matches.
NORTHEAST UNITED FC VS ATK MOHUN BAGAN: TEAM NEWS
Khalid Jamil, the interim Head Coach, formed the team with more of attacking mindset. There were only 2 changes in the team from their previous match, Nim Dorjee in place of Ashutosh Mehta and Deshorn Brown replacing Idrissa Sylla. Khalid chose the same structure of 4-3-3 as it helped them to penetrate into opponent’s defense.
Whereas, Mariners made 3 changes in their squad by replacing Manvir Singh, Edu Garcia and Sahil Sheikh with David Williams, Pronay Haldar and Prabir Das. Head Coach Antonio Habas Lopez put his in the formation of 4-4-2 which is a balanced approach in terms of defense as well as attack.
NORTHEAST UNITED FC VS ATK MOHUN BAGAN: MATCH ANALYSIS
After a quiet first half, the match took an ecstatic turn with a controversial goal by the Portuguese winger Luis Machado when he pushed centre-back Tiri on the pass of Federico Gallego and took lead for the Highlanders.
There were more chances for the Mariners and looked like that they will take the lead. In the 72nd minute, Roy Krishna snatched the equalizer on the threaded ball by Carl McHugh and tapped the ball into the near post.
It was an end-to-end match where Mariners had great chances but it was in-form Federico Gallego who took the responsibility of deciding the match. Gallego received a short pass from Rochharzela on the top of the penalty box from left side and bent it towards the far post. Arindam Bhattacharya couldn’t save the curler and the match ended as 2-1 in favor of the Highlanders.
NOTABLE PERFORMANCES:
Federico Gallego: Hero of the match who has been getting better and better since his return from injury. An assist to Luis Machado’s goal and then scoring an absolute beauty from outside the box. He was the difference-maker in the match for NorthEast United FC.
In the next round of matches, Mumbai City FC will be waiting for NorthEast United FC and ATK Mohun Bagan will go up against Kerela Blasters.
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