Player Ratings: Damjanovic and Petratos lead ATKMB to derby glory

The Red and Golds sputtered in front of a dominant and decisive Mariners side.

ATK Mohun Bagan solidified a third-place finish in the Indian Super League (ISL) league stages with a gritty 2-0 win over rivals East Bengal in the Kolkata Derby on Saturday, 25 February. After a cagey first half, the Mariners took the lead in the 68th minute thanks to a decisive finish from Slavko Damjanovic. Dimitri Petratos then scored a second in the 90th minute, sealing the three points and helping ATKMB do the double over the Red & Gold Brigaders.

In their second successive derby defeat, Stephen Constantine’s men failed to match up to the collective might of Juan Ferrando’s side. East Bengal’s static defense was to blame for the first goal and the second was a result of simple misfortune. Let us take a look at the player ratings for the game.

East Bengal FC (By Riddhiman Sarkar)

Kamaljit Singh - 6

Pitched in with his fair share of two saves which were not enough to keep the likes of Damjanovic and Petratos off the scoresheet. 

Sarthak Golui- 5

Had a game to forget as he was unable to defend and attack and lost three one-on-ones against Ashique and Boumous. Subbed off in the 79th minute for Mohammad Rakip.

Lalchungnunga - 5

Blanked out completely at the back and had a horrible game as he contested only two ground duels and lost both.

Charalambos Kyriakou - 6.5

Went flying in with his seven successful tackles as he desperately kept East Bengal in the game but lost out to Petratos for the second goal.

Jerry Lalrinzuala  - 6.5

One of the standout players for East Bengal as he drew quite a number of fouls and beat the pressure with his experienced movement. He managed to win six out of seven ground duels but was not too influential in attack. 

V.P. Suhair - 5.5

The usually skillful winger was way off his game as his best chance of the game came from an ambitious effort outside the box which was eventually turned out by Damjanovic. Suhair was taken off in the 79th minute after he generated only one key pass, completed one take-on, and picked up a yellow.

Mobashir Rahman - 5.5

Got trapped in between Federico Gallego, Hugo Boumous, and Glan Martins and left more of the dirty work to Alex Lima. Mobashir was too easy to bypass and barely made his presence felt.

Alex Lima - 5.5

Looked to be too forward at times and could not help Stephen Constantine’s side play around the Mariners’ three-man midfield. Alex managed to recover the ball six out of seven times but he failed to pass as effectively, missing his long-ball target five times.

Naorem Mahesh Singh - 6.5

Popped up everywhere as he ranked third among the players who covered the most distance in the game and was also the only Red-and-Gold player among four other ATK Mohun Bagan players.

Cleiton Silva - 6.5

A frustrating evening for the hard-working Brazilian striker who was booked for dissent. Cleiton did manage to complete two take-ons and get one shot on target but there is only so much he could have done on his own.

Jake Jervis- 5.5

Jervis only had one off-target shot to mention as he was completely absent in attack. Additionally, he only got on the ball 18 times.

https://youtu.be/F0xF7jwG9dE

Substitutes

Jordan O’Doherty- N/A

Sumeet Passi - 5.5

Barely helped improve the Red and Golds’ plight as he picked up a yellow in only 10 minutes of action and completed just one pass.  

Mohammad Rakip- 6.5

Turned in two successful crosses and could have been brought on earlier in place of Sarthak Golui.

ATK Mohun Bagan (By Uttiyo Sarkar)

Vishal Kaith – 6.0

The ATKMB custodian hardly had much to do in the game. But sharp with his cross-collection and distribution.

Asish Rai – 7.5

Rai did a pretty good job to keep dangerous Mahesh Singh quiet. Was defensively quite solid and added decent attacking threat, sending in some good crosses and getting a good shot on target too.

Pritam Kotal – 7.0

The ATKMB captain was composed at the back and helped maintain a sturdy defensive line. Didn’t allow Cleiton Silva to cause much trouble and read the game well.

Slavko Damjanovic – 8.0

Damjanovic properly introduced himself to the ATKMB fanbase in style. He scored a clever winner, flicking a nice effort from close range. Kept Jervis quiet too with proactive defending, making three clearances.

Subashish Bose – 6.5

Bose had to work really hard because of East Bengal’s moves coming through his side. He was given some problems by VP Suhair, who burst past him on the right on multiple occasions. Recovered as the game progressed, making four clearances, two interceptions, and two blocks.

Glan Martins – 7.0

Martins was highly energetic and alert to danger in midfield, using his game-reading abilities to win back the ball on numerous occasions. Made four interceptions and one tackle in an efficient outing.

Federico Gallego – 7.0

Gallego played in a more withdrawn midfield role and progressed the ball smoothly into the final third. Allowed Boumous and Petratos to be further forward because of his passes from the deep. He also created a few big chances with clever passes and ensured his side dominate possession.  

Hugo Boumous – 6.5

Boumous wasn’t at his fittest but still put in a respectable shift to raise the energy levels of ATKMB's attacking front. Carried the ball forward pretty well and created a few nice chances.

Manvir Singh – 7.0

The winger had a frustrating first half but leaped to life after the break. Moved the ball better into the box and created a few nice chances. Then provided the assist for the winner with a delightful flick that caught the East Bengal team off guard.

Ashique Kuruniyan – 6.5

Kuruniyan caused huge problems for Sarthak Golui with his electric runs and added a lot of threat with his forward runs. Set up a few half chances, but it was his pacy movement that helped light up a relatively cagey match.

Dimitri Petratos – 7.5

Petratos was allowed to play more further forward than usual thanks to Boumous’ presence and capitalized on that. Got a few chances, including a huge one in the second half that struck the bar. Then scored a late goal – pouncing on Kamaljit’s scuffed attempt to tap into the goal.

Substitutes

Lalthathanga Khawlhring – 7.0

Added a lot more control to his side after coming on. Provided a lovely pass to send Nassiri through leading to the second goal.

Liston Colaco – 6.0

Went on a few promising runs, but was unable to cause major damage.

Kiyan Nassiri – 7.0

Nassiri loves playing against East Bengal and proved that with a brilliant cameo. Was able to slide into the goal before seeing his attempt blocked. Then went through on goal and struck a shot, which was parried out for Dimitri to score ATKMB's second.