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Bengaluru FC hosted defending champions ATK in a high-octane clash at the Sree Kanteerava Stadium in Bengaluru, Karnataka in the second match of the Hero Indian Super League.
Before the match started, Bengaluru FC began in the third position of the ISL standings having acquired 15 points from their eight matches so far. Bengaluru went into the game with a chance to reach atop the table with a win tonight against ATK. Teddy Sheringham's ATK, on the other hand, were in the bottom half of the table in the seventh position with 9 points from their seven matches.
Bengaluru returned to the top of the standings owing to a wonder strike from their skipper Sunil Chhetri. The Bengaluru defence weathered the ATK attacks in the second half and held on to ensure the three points.
Bengaluru FC
Gurpreet Singh Sandhu (7/10) - The India No.1 was called into action by the ATK attack a couple of times in the first half and had a sloppy moment as he lost the ball from a corner and almost conceded. He made a good save from a Robbie Keane shot in the second half and was confident in his collections as ATK tested him on occasions.
Harmanjot Khabra (6.5/10) - The right-back was kept busy tonight as he had the task of marking the creative Portuguese Zequinha, keeping him mostly restricted to defensive duties in the match.
Rahul Bheke (6.5/10) - The Mumbai man played in the centre-back position alongside Juanan and was stable with good clearances and interceptions. He came close to scoring in the first half but his effort was cleared off the line by Shankar.
Juanan (7.5/10) - The Spanish defender was involved in a couple of chances in the early moments in the first half and cut a strong figure in the Bengaluru defence. He kept Robbie Keane in check throughout and was even adjudged the Hero of the Match.
Subhasish Bose (7/10) - The left-back for the home side was an attacking threat for the away side with his runs on the flank. He combined well with Edu Garcia and created many chances along the left flank with his incisive runs and crosses.
Erik Partaalu (6.5/10) - The Australian played the pivot role between the defence and the attack and was a target man during the Bengaluru setpieces.
Edu Garcia (6.5/10) - The Spaniard was on setpiece duty as usual and put in good deliveries into the box and combined well with Bose on the left flank.
Dimas Delgado (7/10) - Delgado played as the facilitator in the midfield with keeping the game going and winning back possession from the ATK midfielders.
Sunil Chhetri (8/10) - The Indian skipper was quiet for the most part of the first half but got his name on the scoresheet with a scorcher. He beat Debjit from way outside the half with a swerving effort into the left top corner.
Udanta Singh (6.5/10) - The mercurial winger was a constant threat on the right flank and made a lot of overlapping runs. He put in a number of crosses into the box for the attackers and tested the ATK defence many times.
Miku (6.5/10) - The Venezuelan forward was active in the initial minutes of the first half but was later kept in check by the ATK defence. He had one close effort on the goal but was unable to beat Debjit Majumder.
Substitutes:
Alwyn George (5/10) - The Indian midfielder came on for the final 15 minutes and unfortunately did not have much time to create a sizeable impact.
Braulio Nobrega (6/10) - Braulio came on as a substitute and almost made an immediate impact when his effort hit the post. He came close again but Jordi put in a last-ditch tackle to keep his effort out.
John Johnson (5.5/10) - The defender was put in by Albert Roca to stabilise the defence in the second half as ATK looked dangerous and Bengaluru wanted to protect the solitary goal lead.
ATK
Debjit Majumder (7/10) - The former Mohun Bagan keeper had a busy night between the sticks for the away side. He was constantly called into action and did well to keep Bengaluru at bay but was beaten by a long-ranger from Sunil Chhetri.
Keegan Perreira (6.5/10) - The former Bengaluru man was on his toes throughout the ninety minutes having to deal with the pacy Udanta Singh and thus, was mostly resorted to his own half manning the defensive line.
Tom Thorpe (7/10) - The Manchester United academy graduate was a rock in the centre of the ATK defence and managed to keep Miku in check. He was a constant threat during setpieces and came close to scoring on a couple of occasions.
Jordi Montel (6.5/10) - The Spaniard centre-back had a poor first half as he was caught many times with through-balls and runs by the Bengaluru attackers. His performance in the second was better and included a last-ditch tackle as ATK did not allow Bengaluru to impose their control.
Prabir Das (7/10) - The ATK right-back was up against Sunil Chhetri on the right wing and thus was quieter on the attacking front compared to his usual standards.
Conor Thomas (7/10) - The English midfielder played the sweeping role tonight in the middle of the park and put in a lot of strong tackles to put an end to many of the Bengaluru attacks.
Shankar Sampingraj (6.5/10) - The young defensive midfielder played just in front of the ATK defence. He made a desperate goal-line clearance from Rahul Bheke's effort. Shankar was substituted at the halfway mark
Rupert Nongrum (6.5/10) - The Northeast man came very close to giving ATK the lead but his effort was blocked by the Bengaluru defenders. He made good runs along the flanks and put in a couple of crosses for the ATK attackers.
Zequinha (7/10) - The Portuguese winger was the source of many chances for the away side with his attacking play. He tried to play in a lot of aerial through balls as he looked threatening but was taken off at the halfway mark by Sheringham.
Robin Singh (5.5/10) - The former India international had a poor outing tonight after returning from his injury as he had no positive contribution for the ATK side. He did not have a single shot on the Bengaluru goal and couldn't prove a credible threat during the setpieces.
Robbie Keane (7.5/10) - The Irishman was the lone crusader in the ATK attack with his runs and often fell back into the midfield to get involved in the attacking process. He had a good effort in the second half that was saved by Gurpreet Singh Sandhu
Substitutes:
Ryan Taylor (6/10) - The Englishman was brought on by Sheringham at the start of the second half and played a defensive midfield role for the away side. He tried to find the runs of ATK wingers and too all the setpieces.
Bipin Singh (6/10) - Singh also came on after the first half break and slotted into the midfield in place of Shankar but in an attacking capacity. He had a chance to score when he latched onto a rebound from Keane's shot but failed to put it past Sandhu in the Bengaluru goal.
Hitesh Sharma (5.5/10) - The former Mumbai FC midfielder was put in by Sheringham to insert pace into the midfield. The youngster made a couple of good runs behind the Bengaluru defence but could not manage a shot on target.
