It's still about three months to go before the kick-off of India's domestic football season and ATK Mohun Bagan coach Antonio Lopez Habas has already made no bones about his goal of regaining the ISL crown his team failed to lift after faltering in the final hurdle last season. However, if Habas has some business to finish, his team is insinuating at the making of a season of hope.
On a bigger stage and facing a graver challenge, ATK Mohun Bagan kept their AFC Cup flag flying with a hard-earned 1-1 draw against Bashundhara Kings in the Maldives capital of Male on Tuesday and stormed into the one-leg inter-zonal semifinal of the continental competition.
Coming into the final Group D encounter needing just a draw to seal the deal, ATK Mohun Bagan did precisely that. They fell behind a first-half goal for the second match running. However, David Williams brought home the equalizer in the 62nd minute to prevent the Bangladesh premier league champions, who played the second half with a man down, from having the last laugh and queering the pitch for Habas and his team.
Before entering into the contest, ATKMB's Spanish coach sought a balance between offence and defence from his players. But it was the attacking intent from Roy Krishna and Co., which was on display right from the beginning.
Liston Colaco, who scored the equalizer before his team blew away Maziya in the previous match, missed a gilt-edged chance in the 18th minute. Williams, having drawn both the Bashundhara centre-backs out of their positions, set Colaco free inside the box. But the India forward, who joined the side from Hyderabad FC, failed to place the ball into an unprotected goal.
Krishna also came close to breaking the deadlock twice, especially his first chance - an attempted bicycle kick - was a spectacular one.
Just when ATK Mohun Bagan looked to be in the mood of having a ball, Bashundhara showed why they were Bangladesh champions. In a series of attacks, they laid siege to the ATK Mohun Bagan box before going ahead. Jonathan Fernandes, having received the ball from fellow Brazilian Robinho, beat Amrinder Singh at the first post in the 28th minute although ATK Mohun Bagan goalkeeper should have done better in dealing with it.
Missing the cutting edge of suspended French midfielder Hugo Boumous in the attacking third, Krishna and his troops were also up against a physical game from Bashundhara. The fact that out of the seven bookings in the match, five went against the Bangladesh side bore testimony to this.
But it was a moment of madness from Bashundhara defender Sushanto Tripura just on the cusp of halftime, which gave the advantage back to the Kolkata side. Going for an aerial challenge with Subhashis Bose, Sushanto - already on booking - fell violently on the ATK Mohun Bagan challenger and drew a straight red card from the referee.
Bashundhara went into the break with a goal advantage but ATKMB chanced upon a route back into the game with a man advantage.
Williams then did the needful a little after the hour mark. Colaco raced past his challengers inside the box and provided a superb lay-off from the left for the Australian forward to tap home the equalizer.
Habas's team, which surprisingly went into a defensive mould after that goal, survived a few late scares as Bashundhara upped their ante and were even denied by the woodwork once during that period of their late charge.
Having successfully accomplished their Maldives mission, Krishna & Co will now face either FC Nasaf of Uzbekistan or Turkmenistan's FC Ahal in the knockout game on September 22.
