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10-man Atletico de Kolkata played with valour to hold hosts FC Goa in their ISL match today. Arata Izumi opened the scoring for the Kolkata side with a peach of a finish whereas Keenan Almeida leveled for Zico’s team with a thunderous goal right before the end of the game.
The main highlight of the match was ATK player Baljit Singh Sahni’s red card right after half time. The Kolkata side although being reduced to 10 men were able to hold on to their lead until the Goan side finally levelled the score.
It was an ill-tempered encounter with as many as 10 yellow cards and one red card shown to the players.
Here are the player ratings:
FC Goa
Elinton Andrade – 6/10
Experienced Brazillian keeper hardly had anything to do throughout the game. He did concede a goal, but there was no way he could have stopped that. He was substituted in the 68th minute when Zico wanted to bring on Luca and they already had six foreign players on the field. So Andrade had to be brought out.
Keenan Almeida – 7.5/10
Almeida scored the highly anticipated equaliser for the team with a pile driver of a finish. Other than the goal he was very lively especially running up and down through the right wing.
Gregory Armolin – 7/10
The French defender was instrumental in today’s game and he was the reason why Goa could pick up a point from the match. Armolin instigated Baljit Sahni who received a straight red card for head-butting him. Numerically superior, it became easier for the Goan side to come back into the match. Even the assist for Keenan’s goal came from Armolin’s header.
Lucio – 7/10
The most consistent Brazilian center half of all time, he was very impactful today. From moving up the pitch to covering the dangerous Hume, he did everything he could for the team. ATK stopper Amrinder saved a number of shots from him in the first half.
Debabrata Roy – 7/10
Young Roy was a live wire running throughout the plank. Interestingly he was moved from his usual left back position into right back today. The star defender was impressive with an excellent work rate.
Denson Devadas – 5/10
Devdas was very poor. The ex-Mohun Bagan player could not keep up his last match’s performance. Inconsistency has always been the problem for this talented midfielder. He was hardly able to stop the ATK players in the first half and kept gifting free kicks to them. Later he was replaced in the 58th minute.
Jofre – 8.5/10
Undoubtedly the best player of the match, the experienced Spanish midfielder wrecked havoc on the well organised ATK defence, especially in the second half. A number of shots from him were saved brilliantly by keeper Amrinder. Top-notch performance from him.
Leo Moura – 6.5/10
He was just about average in the game playing in the centre of the midfield. The Brazilian tried to be the pivot of the side in the first half, but good counter play from ATK stopped him from having any kind of an impact. Borja marked him brilliantly throughout.
Romeo Fernandez – 5.5/10
Last match’s stand out performer, Romeo was unable to deliver a similar performance this time around. Habas very cleverly blocked the wing where he operates in with a double cover. This move not only stopped Goa’s attacks but also nullified Romeo’s impact in the game.
Mandar Rao Desai – 7.5/10
Another excellent performance by last game’s star. When ATK was reduced to 10 men, he exploited the space left open in the wing. Hume had to track back in order to stop him, but he kept pushing up. A number of excellent shots from him were parried away by Amrinder in the second half.
Reinaldo – 6/10
Average performance from the Brazilian striker. He tried his best to wriggle into free space but lacked proper support in the striking half. Goa needed another out and out striker to partner Reinaldo since Moura was not able to support him.
Subs:
Lakshmikant Kattimani – 5/10
The young Goan keeper had to be brought on since Zico wanted to bring in Luca and at that point they already had six foreigners on the field. So he replaced Andrade under the sticks in the 68th minute. With ATK down to 10 men, there were hardly any shots on target for Kattimani to save.
Jonatan Luca – 6/10
Luca used his physicality to the maximum to win balls outside the box. He had a few shots on target right before FC Goa scored the equaliser. Though Luca is not an out an out striker, he could have made an impact if he was given more time on the field.
Victorino Fernandes – 5.5/10
The Goan winger was brought in the 79th minute of the match. He took Romeo’s position on the right side of the field which was guarded strongly by the ATK defence. Victorino created one or two good moves from the right but was blocked very well by Augustin Fernandes.
Atletico de Kolkata
Amrinder Singh – 7.5/10
Singh was brilliant throughout the match. He proved today why Habas is so confident playing him under the sticks. The young keeper made a string of excellent saves especially during the dying moments of the game. The goal he conceded was unstoppable. Other than that he kept his cool and organised his defence really well.
Augustin Fernandes – 7/10
The calm and collected left back had the daunting duty to mark Romeo Fernandez who had been instrumental through that region in his last match. He did an excellent job blocking Romeo and then Victorino throughout the second half.
Ofentse Nato – 7/10
The consistent African defender showcased a stern defensive display in the center of the defense. He formed a good partnership with fellow centre-back Tiri to plug in any holes created in the defence. It was very difficult for the Goa team to break down ATK’s central defence.
Tiri – 6/10
Tiri played his first match of the tournament today. He was impressive partnering Nato in the defence. The young Spanish defender adapted to the team strategy very well. Reinaldo was marked heavily by him, stopping the Brazilian every time he came close to the ATK goal.
Denzil Franco – 6/10
He was decent throughout the game. It became very difficult for him to cover the right side when ATK was reduced to 10 men. Romeo kept exploiting this and launched attacks on the ATK goal. He made a reckless two-footed challenge on Jofre early in the match.
Arata Izumi – 8/10
The official ‘Man of the Match’ of today’s game, he scored the first goal for ATK with a peach of a volley from Javi Lara’s inch perfect cross. Other than the goal he was quite instrumental for the Kolkata side. He was eventually replaced right before the end of the match.
Borja Fernandez – 6/10
Although he was not as impactful as he generally is, he worked his heart out for the team. For most part of the match, he kept guarding the centre of ATK’s defence almost like a third stopper. But he was generally not able to retain possession when he moved up to attack.
Gavilan – 6/10
Gavilan was decent today. He started very well controlling the early exchanges of the game. But with time he couldn't keep up with the tempo of the game and slowly faded away. The Spaniard's movements were impressive and he kept interchanging positions with Borja throughout the first half.
Javi Lara – 6.5/10
Lara’s magnificent inch perfect cross brought in the first goal of the match. Not only was Arata’s finish excellent, but Lara’s cross was world class. His free kick from 35 yards went just wide of the post in the first half.
Baljit Sahni – 5/10
Sahni should have been more insightful and not reacted to Armolin’s instigation. His red card was the turning point in the game as it provided the opportunity for FC Goa to return into the game. If he had managed to stay on the field, ATK could have come out of the match with full three points. Sahani will miss ATK’s first home game against Kerala Blasters on the13th putting Habas in a spot of bother.
Ian Hume – 7.5/10
The Canadian Striker was exceptional. He worked very hard to keep up the tempo of the game even when his team was outnumbered following the red card. Hume was so dedicated that he even dropped into the defence in the second half covering the left back position. He was fouled repeatedly and needlessly by FC Goa’s players throughout the match.
Subs:
Valdo – 5.5/10
Valdo came in right after half-time as a striker pushing Hume just behind him. Valdo tried to keep as much possession as he could but being the only attacking player for ATK, he could not really create any effective moves.
Josemi – 5/10
Habas was forced to bring in the experienced Spanish defender when FC Goa kept attacking in waves. Josemi hardly got the ball, but his presence was enough to bring confidence among his teammates. It looked like he needs a little more time to be fully match fit.
