The seventh season of the renowned Indian Super League (ISL) is off to a terrific start, as the race for the top spot is gathering pace. Meanwhile, ATK Mohun Bagan are off to an excellent start, as they look to come up with another formidable performance this season.
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The side has played four matches so far, winning three and losing one, as they have nine points in their bag. They are currently placed third on the table, behind second-placed NorthEast United and table-toppers Mumbai City FC. While all the three teams are on nine points each, ATK are behind on goal difference.
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Meanwhile, ATK would be looking to extend their good run further, as they take on Hyderabad FC in their next clash on Friday, in Bengaluru. The latter is currently placed sixth, with five points, having finished on 10th last season.
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As ATK gear up, players like Tiri, Edu Garcia and Pritam Kotal came up with their pre-match insights. “Jamshedpur is quite efficient in scoring goals in the set pieces, especially of high balls. They have used it well. We also did miss passes and a lot of fouls. We wasted the chance to score. Now, it is time to think about the match against Hyderabad. This team is also quite skilled in set-pieces. Getting goals. The aim of our defence will not to fail when the ball of the set-piece kick comes flying and to resist that attack properly. No magic can stop it. We have to correct our mistakes by practising more. That effort is ongoing,” said Tiri during the pre-match press conference.
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Meanwhile, Garcia was notable about the side’s tendency to give away set-pieces. “In the match against Jamshedpur, we gave them chances to hit a lot of corners and free-kicks. Both goals have been scored from the set-pieces. We have to correct our mistakes in Friday’s Hyderabad match. They also have some good footballers in their team. But, the challenge is to turn around and return to the path of victory. We have to get three points from this match. We will play with that confidence. All the matches in ISL are tough. We give equal importance to every team,” he said.
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Kotal was also curious about the loss ATK suffered in their last game against Jamshedpur FC, as he said, “Every team has a bad day. Lots of mistakes are made unknowingly. The day of the Jamshedpur match was just not ours. They got two opportunities and made use of those. We also got chances to score. But, we failed to use it. The team did not lose just for the defence. It was everyone’s failure. Football is a team game. If we win, then it is everyone’s achievement. If we lose, it is a failure for all of us. But it is temporary. We are thinking about the next match against Hyderabad now. We all have the belief that we will turn around in that match by correcting our mistakes. The coach is making a strategy in the same way. We are discussing mistakes among ourselves as well.”
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