Ratings: Majcen nets double as Gokulam Kerala smash ATK Mohun Bagan

Rashid and Jithin MS were the other scorers for the AFC Cup debutants.

Gokulam Kerala picked up a defiant 4-2 win over ATK Mohun Bagan to start their AFC Cup 2022 group stages with a bang at the Salt Lake Stadium, Kolkata on Wednesday. The I-League champions scored the opener through Luka Majcen in the 50th minute, before Pritam Kotal brought things level three minutes later.

However, Gokulam Kerala kept going and scored twice after that through Rishad (57’) and Majcen (65’) to get a big lead. Liston Colaco pulled one back in the 80th minute, but substitute Jithin MS scored late on to help his side get a dominant win. Here are the Player Ratings for the game.

ATK Mohun Bagan

Amrinder Singh – 4.0

Left stranded for the first goal, but could’ve done better for the remaining ones. Let Rishad’s shot go straight through him and unable to close down Luka’s angles well enough for his second.

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Prabir Das – 3.0

Too aggressive and impatient with his work on the right, resulted in some misplaced crosses and wasted moves. Struggled to contain Gokulam’s counter-attacks. He was completely outwitted for some of the goals, especially the last one where Majcen passed one right past him to assist Jithin.

Tiri – N/A

Looked sharp at the back before suffering an unfortunate injury that forced him off before half-time.

Pritam Kotal – 4.5

Kotal scored the equalizer from a corner and tried to inspire a comeback, a nice strike from a corner. However, he couldn't be the defensive leader his side needed him to be. Caught out of position for the first two goals and carelessly let Majcen through for his second.

Subhasish Bose – 4.0

Bose didn’t find it easy at all defending against Gokulam Kerala’s fast-paced attacks from down his wing, losing four duels. He was caught napping for the opener, failing to stop the cross and made little impact going forward.

Lenny Rodrigues – 3.5

Lenny was basically let to act as his side sole’s defensive midfielder, but lost his composure in the second half after a decent first half. Allowed a lot of transitions through midfield and failed to protect the backline against any of the attacks. Subbed after a poor second-half display.

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Joni Kauko – 5.5

The Finland international tried to be his side’s midfield engine and troubled the opposition midfield with his technique and physicality. Created some big chances with slick passes, but was unable to see them converted. Lost his cool in the second half after being closely marked and persistently fouled.

Manvir Singh – 4.0

Manvir was again inefficient in the right wing role and was left frustrated. Failed to create anything noteworthy, making four unsuccessful crosses and never looking a big scoring threat.

Liston Colaco – 7.5

Liston tried his best to get past some aggressive marking and was arguably ATKMB’s most exciting outlet through the left. Created some big chances with nice delivery and set up ATK Mohun Bagan’s equalizer with an accurate corner. Then scored a brilliant free-kick to give his side some hope.

David Williams – 5.0

David played in a deeper role than usual and struggled to make an impact expected from a no.10 position. Couldn’t set up anything big with his link-up play and missed a sitter in the second half.

Roy Krishna – 5.5

Krishna was ATKMB's biggest threat inside the box, getting himself in a lot of promising positions. His finishing, however, was just not clinical enough. Roy struck a few shots at the keeper and hit the post after a nice move in the first half. Mellowed down in the second half.

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Substitutes

Ashutosh Mehta – 3.0

Ashutosh came on as a makeshift centre-back for the injured TIri, but absolutely failed at that role. Caught horribly napping for multiple goals, as he left a huge pocket of space for Gokulam Kerala to attack and pounce on his weaknesses. Taken off towards the end.

Kiyan Nassiri – N/A

Nassiri tried his best to create chances, but was phased out of the game.

Ravi Rana – N/A

Rana struggled defensively towards the end, losing mark of Jithin for his goal.

Gokulam Kerala

Rakshit Dagar – 5.0

The Gokulam goalkeeper looked way too nervous in his box, never looking comfortable enough with saves. Made a few decent ones, but got nowhere near the ATK Mohun Bagan goals and nearly made some poor errors too.

Abdul Hakku – 5.5

Hakku was too aggressive with his defensive style, often clattering into Liston or allowing him to go past him on the right. Came up with some vital challenges, but ATKMB targeted his side to cause a lot of trouble for his side.

Alex Saji – 7.0

Saji maintained his cool against a barrage of attacks from the Mariners to ensure the star foreigners couldn’t dominate his side. Marked Krishna really well, not allowing him too much space to operate and made three clearances and two tackles in a commendable defensive outing.

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Aminou Bouba – 8.0

The Cameroonian centre-bak was an absolute rock at the back, having a ‘you shall not pass’ attitude to him. Bouba made a lot of key challenges to extinguish moves, making over 10 clearances and three duels won. He shut down the majority of ATK Mohun Bagan’s attacks himself, allowing his side to stay in the game and get the win.

Muhammed Uvais – 6.5

The sturdy left-back did a pretty solid job defensively, holding his own against Manvir and Prabir. His impressive positioning and movement allowed him to cut down a lot of attacks, winning four duels and making three clearances in a solid defensive outing.

Emil Benny – 6.5

Benny was a real livewire in midfield, covering a lot of ground to contribute both defensive and offensively. Created a few nice chances and won a lot of key duels in midfield, helping stop a number of attacks and create counter-attacks too.

Sharif Mukhammad– 7.0

The Gokulam Kerala captain was like their anchor in midfield, maintaining a 97% passing accuracy and moving things around efficiently. Also did his effective defensive work to stop a lot of chances, helping his side keep cool and get the job done.

Rishad Pazhaya – 7.5

The energetic midfielder did not shy away from the fight and went toe-to-toe with some intimidating players. He won five duels and stopped a lot of balls from going through to frustrate ATK Mohun Bagan players. Rishad also finished off a move perfectly to score Gokulam Kerala’s second with a nice finish, helping them get the advantage to inspire a win.

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Thahir Zaman – 7.0

Zaman kept on trying to create things through the right and got his reward in the second half, making a smart cut-back to assist the opening goal. Taken off after an efficient display.

Luka Majcen – 9.0

Majcen managed to shine in a game playing with such ‘major’ foreign stars at the Salt Lake Stadium. Troubled the defenders with his movement all game long and scored the opener with a smart finish. Then scored another by getting past the backline to slot past Amrinder, before assisting Jithin’s goal with a smart pass. A fantastic display from the Gokulam Kerala forward.

Jourdaine Fletcher – 8.0

Fletcher kept ATKMB’s right-sided defenders on their toes with his unpredictable attacking and made himself count in the second half. He set up two goals, one for Majcen and another for RIshad to finish the game with two assists and making a big impact in the game.

Substitutes

Jithin MS – 7.0

Jithin MS made the impact his coach wanted him to, smartly moving past the entire ATK Mohun Bagan backline to score the fourth goal and help his side get the win.

Sreekuttan VS – N/A

Sreekuttan did some solid defensive work, helping his side get the job done.

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