AFC Cup 2021 Live Commentary: ATK Mohun Bagan Vs Maziya S&RC

Published at :August 22, 2021 at 2:17 AM

Modified at :August 22, 2021 at 5:31 AM

After a sloppy first half, ATK Mohun Bagan tuned up their style to blow away Maziya S&RC in the second half. Clever substitutions from Antonio Habas made it possible, with both Ashutosh Mehta and Hugo Boumous being pivotal in creating all 3 goals. Boumous, in particular, ran the show from the moment he came on and proved why the Mariners have signed him for such a big fee. ATKMB's defending was disappointing throughout the game, which is something Habas will look to improve in order to get a result against Basudhara Kings. Fortunately for the Mariners, the equation for them is simple in the final game. Just avoid defeat and qualify for the knockout rounds! We'll be back with more action from the AFC Cup on Tuesday. Till then, here's Uttiyo Sarkar signing off for Khel Now. Good night and goodbye, everyone!

90+4' A late substitution for ATK Mohun Bagan, as Roy Krishna goes off for youngster Abhishek Dhananjay. The debuting youngster doesn't get much time, as the referee blows the final whistle!

90+3' UGH! ATK Mohun Bagan are playing with a swagger towards the end here, as Krishna brings the ball forward and spots Boumous inside the box. The midfielder tries to dribble past players inside the box before taking a shot that is blocked, before Manvir's attempt from the rebound is also blocked.

90' Hamza is again at the thick of things as he keeps the ball on the right-wing and flings in a great cross into the far post, but Stewart's header goes wide. Meanwhile, 4 minutes of added time is announced.

89' Substitute Umair decides to go for the spectacular with a long-ranger from way out, but sees it power wide of the goal.

88' The Mariners are looking hungry for more here as they look to further improve their goal difference in the game.

86' Habas makes another substitution for the Mariners, as Liston comes off for the debuting youngster Engson Singh.

85' Maziya make a few more substitutions, as Mohammed Irufaan is taken off for Amdaan Ali. MIdfielder Takashi Odawara also goes off for Mohamed Umair.

83' Well, the Maziya goalkeeper Mirzokhid Mamatkhanov definitely loves playing with fire! He tries to dribble past Krishna inside his box and almost loses possession, before somehow managing to clear the ball. Not the kind of stuff you want to be doing while being 2 goals down..

82' CHANCE! ATKMB have become sloppy defensively here as Cornelius is found all open inside the box, but his attempted volley goes wide of the target.

80' Lots of drama here as ATKMB demand a red card for Moosa Yaamin, who clearly tugged down Boumous around the halfway line when he was going through on goal. The Maziya defender is shown a yellow card, leaving the Mariners' players bemused.

79' AMRINDER SAVES! ATK Mohun Bagan fail to deal with a set-piece and the ball falls freely to a player, but Singhs shows great reflexes to save it from close range.

78' Maziya players look a bit dejected after that and are lacking energy to do much. They make another substitution, as Hussain Nihaan comes off for Ibrahim Hassan.

77' GOALLLL! MANVIR SCORES! Boumous is at the heart of it again, as he finds a gap in Maziya's backline and slides a perfect through ball to Singh - allowing him to go through on goal and Manvir makes no mistake scoring from yards out. 3-1!

75' UGH! Lenny's attempted clearance ends up sending Krishna through on goal, but the Fijian hesistates a bit before taking a shot that is blocked by a defender. He'll be disappointed not to finish that off.

73' Manvir is down on the ground here and seems to have done his hamstring. He is being able to walk away, which suggests that he might not need to be substituted right now.

71' Solid defending from Kotal! Maziya manage to bomb forward in numbers, as Subashish is nutmegged before the ball is played to Hamza - who tries to find an empty man in the middle but his pass is cleared away by Pritam for a corner. The set-piece is a dangerous one and meets Mohammed Irufaan's header, but it's collected smartly by Amrinder.

70' It's all about game management now for ATKMB. They have to be defensively sturdy to retain their lead and see out the win here.

67' Maziya make their first substitution here. The goal-scorer Aisam Ibrahim is taken off for Naiz Hassan!

66' Hugo Boumous needed under a minute to create a big chance and set up the goal. He should've had the assist as Colaco wasn't able to finish the chance, but Boumous is running the show with confidence here.

65' Another big chance for the Mariners to score! Boumous again sends Liston through on goal, but Colaco is unable to go past his man and take a shot on target.

64' GOALLLLL! ATK MOHUN BAGAN TAKE THE LEAD! Boumous makes an instant impact and dribbles past a few bodies in midfield before finding Liston clear inside the area. Colaco's shot is saved, but Krishna scores cleverly from the rebound. 2-1!

63' Another substitution for ATKMB, as Sk Sahil comes on for Deepak Tangri - who seemingly suffered a knock. Meanwhile, David Williams is also taken off, with Hugo Boumous coming on.

61' The Mariners create a nice attack as Manvir manages to free up space for Williams outside the box, but the Australian forward's left-footed shot goes way over.

59' CLOSE! Hamza manages to dribble past multiple ATKMB defenders inside the box before taking a shot which is held onto strongly by Amrinder.

58' Stewart is almost sent through on goal inside the box, but a heroic clutch tackle from Carl McHugh helps the Mariners clear the ball away from danger.

56' Maziya have reclaimed control of the game and are dominating possession again. Habas' side needs to ensure they keep control of the ball in order to get another one here.

53' Close! Stewart finds the ball outside the box and manages to sneak in a shot past multiple defenders but only to see it brisker wide of the target.

51' Uh, well Liston still seems to be excited by that goal! He takes over a set-piece from the byline and attempts a Cristiano-esque shot which ends up going into the rafters.

49' Well, Habas deserves praise for sticking with Liston after that kind of a half. Colaco will be feeling like a million bucks now and seems energized by the goal, as he looks to get another one here.

48' GOALLLL! REDEMPTION FOR LISTON! After a frustrating first-half, Colaco gets the equalizer for the Mariners! Ashutosh makes an instant impact and flings in a perfect cross into the box which is converted beautifully through a flying header from Colaco. 1-1!

47' CLOSE! The Green Boys create another chance through a corner as Ibrahim's corner meets a player's header and the ball just breezes wide of the target. That was inches away from going in!

46' The second half kicks off! This time, Maziya are the ones to be attacking from the right to left. They almost have a brilliant start to the half as Hamza Mohammed gets the ball just inside the box - but shoots the ball wide of the target!

10:32 PM ATK Mohun Bagan have made a substitution, with Ashutosh Mehta coming on for Sumit Rathi. Looks like an attacking change, but Rathi was also being troubled by Stewart.

HALF-TIME ANALYSIS: ATK Mohun Bagan have been humbled so far by a determined, hard-working Maziya side. The Green Boys are often opting for route-one football of just blasting crosses into the box, which is making Habas' side uncomfortable. ATKMB will be disappointed with the way they've conceded, as it just took one swift counter-attack to show the vulnerabilities of their backline. Liston Colaco, who replaced Boumous, has lacked that creativity and often tried too much in key areas inside the box. The Mariners have to move around the ball more swiftly and bring on Boumous to turn things around here, or end up dropping big points. We'll be back with action from the second half soon, stay tuned folks!

45+1' ATKMB almost end up conceding one after some more sloppy defending, but go into the break 0-1 down. The Mariners have not at all been clinical in the final third and have lacked that cutting-edge slickness and creativity of Hugo Boumous. Habas has some changes to make in order to get a win here.

45' One minute of added time is announced. Can Habas' men get a late equalizer here?

44' Subashish Bose somehow manages to steal away possession in the left-wing byline outside the box but his cross is not able to find a man inside the box.

43' Fortunately, Krishna manages to get up to the pitch and is okay to carry on. Still isn't moving as sharply though.

41' Hussain Nihaan is shown a yellow card for a horrible sliding challenge on Krishna, who looks to be in some pain after that.

40' ATKMB try to mount a clever move as Pritam Kotal plays a clever chipped ball to Liston in the box, but he is judged offside.

37' The Mariners have only completed 113 passes so far, as compared to Maziya's 133 passes. ATKMB have to pass the ball around swiftly to break down this Maziya backline.

36' Liston again tries to do a bit too much and dribble inside the box instead of spotting out a teammate, resulting in him losing possession and wasting a chance. His decision making has been questionable so far.

35' Things are getting a bit heated here as some rash challenges are flying all over. The Mariners have to keep their cool here if they want to mount a comeback.

32' CLOSE! Liston takes the free-kick and hits a whipped attempt which is punched away by the goalkeeper.

31' ATKMB receive another free kick just outside the box after Krishna was brought down after a reckless challenge. Can they get an equalizer here?

29' ALMOST ANOTHER ONE! Maziya create another chance through that right wing as Cornelius finds Hussain Nihaan inside the box and the midfielder swings in a low cross into far post which nobody can tap into an open net!

27' Antonio Habas will definitely be fuming with how his side conceded that goal. Not only was the set-piece a poor one, but Stewart managed to go past Rathi too easily before assisting Ibrahim - who nobody seemed to mark inside the box. Lots to do for the Mariners to get back in the game.

25' GOAL! Maziya score from a brilliant counter-attack! Cornelius Stewart outmuscles Sumit Rathi before marching into the box and finding a free Aisam Ibrahim inside the box - allowing him to tap one in from close range. 1-0!

24' The Mariners receive a free kick outside the box after Liston is brought down after cleverly stealing the ball off a Maziya defender. Can they get anything done from it?

22' The possession is cut straight down the middle so far, with 50-50 each! However, the Mariners haven't been able to do much from their possession so far.

20' ATKMB's final product has been inefficient so far. The Mariners create another nice counter-attacking chance and the ball is played to Krisha some way outside the box, but he's unable to send Williams through on goal and looks displeased with himself.

18' Liston Colaco finally gets a hold of possession inside the box, but tries too much trickery and ends up losing position in a dangerous position. Frustrating!

16' A good move orchestrated by ATKMB here. A brilliant long ball frees up Manvir on the right, as he cleverly spots Krishna inside the box. However, the Fijian's shot is blocked away for a corner.

13' It's been an entertaining start to the game, but Maziya looks the more dangerous side here. ATKMB must be careful not to concede too many set-pieces here, knowing their opponents' ability through it.

11' Ibrahim's corners are really troubling the Mariners here as Amrinder hurriedly punches out another whipped corner before the defenders are barely able to clear the ball away.

8' AMRINDER SAVES! Maziya trouble the Mariners with a whipped corner which goes past everyone and and threatened to go all the way into the goal before Singh makes a strong punch to clear it away from his line.

7' ATKMB says 'if you can attempt a long ranger, then why not us?' and attempt a shot from a long way out - with the ball going straight to the keeper's hand. Meanwhile, Deepak Tangri is the first player to be booked for a raised arm on a midfielder.

6' CLOSE! Maziya get their first chance of the game as Aisam Ibrahim takes a shot from a long way out and it breezes wide of the target. Not that far off!

5' GOAL DISALLOWED! The Mariners felt they took the lead after a brilliant move through the right-wing as Williams perfectly picked out Roy Krishna in the middle and allowing him to score from close range, but the Fijian was judged offside. Frustrating!

4' Upon closer look, it actually looks like the Mariners are playing with a 3-4-3 formation, but Liston and David Williams are not exactly wide midfielders, but playing more like inverted wingers.

2' ATKMB seem to have started in the 3-4-1-2 formation, but Liston Colaco is sticking more to the left-wing than staying central. Will be interesting to see if he changes his position or not.

1' AND WE KICK-OFF! The Mariners get things started and will be attacking from the left to right.

09:25 PM The teams are now out on the pitch. They will be undergoing all pre-match rituals before things kick off. Kick-off in a bit folks, stay tuned folks!

09:20 PM The equation for ATK Mohun Bagan fans, however, is quite exciting. If the Mariners get a win today, they'll go top of the group with 6 points from 2 games. That would also mean that as long as they're able to avoid a loss against Basudhara Kings in their final group game, they'll prevail as the group winners and move into the knockout rounds. A big game is coming up for Antonio Habas' side.

09:15 PM Maziya have also made a couple of changes from their loss to Basudhara Kings and are intent on getting a win today. With Bengaluru FC having drawn the Bangladesh side today, a win for the Green Boys could give them a big chance to prevail as group toppers. They'll take the game to the Mariners, which could lead to a very entertaining contest.

09:10 PM In terms of their formation, the Mariners should still maintain their 3-4-1-2 shape which succeeded in the last game. Manvir Singh could play up front with Roy Krishna, with David Williams playing behind them. This would mean Liston Colaco has to play as a right wing-back, or could even swap roles with Singh. Meanwhile, this lineup can also revert to a 4-man backline if Maziya go too defensively, with Manvir and Liston then operating as wingers.

09:05 PM ATK Mohun Bagan have only made one change from their win over Bengaluru FC, but it's a big one. Hugo Boumous has been benched, with Liston Colaco coming in for him! The ATKMB no.10 was holding his hamstring towards the end of last game, so it could be a precautionary change.

08:40 PM The lineups for ATK Mohun Bagan Vs Maziya S&RC are out!

ATK Mohun Bagan: Amrinder Singh (GK); Pritam Kotal (C), Sumit Rathi, Subhasish Bose; Manvir Singh, Carl McHugh, Lenny Rodrigues, Deepak Tangri, Liston Colaco; David Williams, Manvir Singh, Roy Krishna.

Maziya S&RC: Mamatkhonov Mirzokhid (GK); Moosa Yamin, Jesus Blanco, Ahmad Abdulla; Mohamed Irufaan (C), Takashi Odawara, Hussain Nihan, Aisam Ibrahim; Ibrahim Mahudee Hussain, Hamza Mohamed, Cornelius Ezekiel.

08:36 PM A bit of scene-setting as we build-up to kickoff. Both ATK Mohun Bagan and Maziya S&RC are in Group D of the AFC Cup 2021. They've been joined by Bengaluru FC from India and Bangladesh's Bashundhara Kings. The four teams will play each other once across three matchdays. The team that finishes as group leaders will advance to the knockout rounds.

ATKMB head coach Antonio Habas would want to ensure his side rides high on their momentum. In Maziya S&RC, the Mariners face a side they don’t regularly play against (unlikely BFC). Knowing how defensively stubborn they can be, ATK Mohun Bagan have to produce an even better performance than their previous game to go on top of Group D.

Maziya S&RC, on the other hand, will be fighting for survival. There will be a lot at stake for them in this one. While their hopes of winning the group was dampened by the opening game loss, all is not yet lost. As long as they are able to win their remaining games, they have an outside chance of prevailing to the next round.

ATK Mohun Bagan Vs Maziya S&RC Preview here.

08:30 PM Hello and welcome to Khel Now's live coverage of the AFC Cup 2021. We have a blockbuster on hand as Indian Super League (ISL) giants ATK Mohun Bagan go head-to-head vs Maziya S&RC. We will be keeping you company here, through a fascinating evening of football.

Follow ATK Mohun Bagan Vs Maziya S&RC live action here with Khel Now.

For more updates, follow Khel Now on Twitter, Instagram and join our community on Telegram.