ATK Mohun Bagan are the so-called defending champions of the Indian Super League this term, after ATK won the title last season, before getting merged with Mohun Bagan. Meanwhile, FC Goa are currently placed fifth, while ATK are placed third on the table.
As the sixth edition of the Indian Super League (ISL) continues to build its intensity, ATK Mohun Bagan prepare to take on FC Goa at the Fatorda Stadium in Bengaluru on Wednesday. Both the teams are off to a fair start, with ATK placed on third, while Goa are on fifth.
As of now, ATK have won three, while their only loss so far has come against Jamshedpur FC, besides a draw against Hyderabad FC. For Goa, they have won and drawn a couple of games each, while their only loss so far has come against Mumbai City FC.
As ATK aim to get back on winning ways, striker Manvir Singh talked about his goal-scoring tendency of late. “After scoring one of the best goals in life against Hyderabad, recreates still prevails. I think I was happier to score that goal than in Derby. But, they got the penalty for me. But, I heard it was not a penalty, many are saying that. My father was also a footballer. He also said on the phone, it was not a penalty. However, there is no point in thinking about what has happened. We all are desperate to win the Goa match now. We are back in victory. We will win the match only if we can use the opportunities. Goa is a good team. I have watched their game. I will play the way the coach tells me,” he said ahead of the match.
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Meanwhile, defensive midfielder Carl McHugh was wary of the side’s winless streak in the last two games and vowed to bounce back. “It is true that, after a good start, we did not get the expected result in the last two matches. But, there is nothing about disappointment. League is long. There must be ups and downs. I don’t think the last two matches will affect the Goa match. We are in favour of the progress that is happening match by match. There is a new opponent in Wednesday’s match. With whom we have not yet played. Not just Goa, this time all the teams are tough opponents in ISL. There are a number of good footballers, both foreign and Indian in Goa team. However, the attacking power that we have has the ability to break the defence of any team in the tournament and score goals. I hope this will be seen in the Goa match,” he reckoned.
Fellow defender Pritam Kotal feels that although they need to play smart football against Goa, there is nothing to panic as of yet. “There will be ups and downs in the league. Nothing has happened yet that caused great loss for us. We will win the Goa match. We have seen them. Winning is important if we want to hold a good place in the league table. We will take care of our own defence and then go for attack. If our goal is intact, the confidence of the whole team increases. We have successive matches, so if injured, there is no chance to recover quickly. That is causing problems for all teams like us. But we are just thinking about ourselves. If we can play our own game, we will win the Goa match,” he opined
“Even though we did not win the Hyderabad match, we played well enough. Many more goal opportunities have been created. Besides Roy Krishna, Manvir is also getting goals. This is a good thing. If it wasn’t for the penalty, we could have kept our goal intact. League is long. All teams do lose points. But, at the moment, we need to return to victory. We have to try that,” said Subhasis Basu.