Ratings: Kwame Karikari magic ensures Chennaiyin FC three points

The Marina Machans came from a goal down to clinch victory.

ATK Mohun Bagan suffered a surprising loss to Chennaiyin FC in their Indian Super League 2022/23 opener, going down 2-1 at the Salt Lake Stadium. The Mariners took the lead through Manvir Singh in the 27th minute, but failed to extend it. The visitors made a few impressive substitutions in the second half, with substitute Kwame Karikari earning and scoring a penalty in the 64th minute. He then set up a winner from Rahim Ali in the 83rd minute, sealing an admirable comeback for the Marina Machans.

Here are the Player Ratings for the game.

ATK Mohun Bagan (by Uttiyo Sarkar)

Vishal Kaith – 4

Playing against his former side, Kaith had an underwhelming outing. While he dealt with their set-pieces and crosses well with timely punches, he made a poor error by bringing down Karikari inside the penalty box. That supposedly, was the turning point of the game as the Ghanaian converted from the spot in style.

Asish Rai – 6.5

Rai did a relatively good job keeping the dangerous Rahim Ali quiet, hassling him with aggressive challenges. He was quite efficient defensively, with four tackles and two clearances but failed to deliver much up front.

Pritam Kotal – 5.5

Kotal was back, playing as part of the back-three, but couldn’t really make a major impact. He did have six clearances, but his passing was wary and Ali’s goal-bound shot went just by him.

Brendan Hamill – 4.5

Hamill was comfortable against Petar Sliskovic, but was dragged out of the comfort zone after Karikari came in. The Ghanaian tormented him, moving past the marker multiple times and even assisted Ali’s goal by outing Hamill. The Australian failed to be a commanding defensive leader.

Subhasish Bose – 4.5

Bose was quite the quiet, retracted figure throughout the game as he almost seemed hesitant to lunge into risky tackles or support the attack. He was caught out of position for Rahim Ali’s goal.

Deepak Tangri – 6.5

Tangri was quite energetic in the midfield and covered a lot of ground to nullify Chennaiyin’s control. He not only made a great block to save a potential early goal but also delivered few timely clearances. The midfielder created a few nice chances with his crosses, but failed to see them converted.

Joni Kauko – 6.5

The Finnish midfielder was a real bulldozer in midfield for his side, hassling the opposition players with his pressing and movement. He made four tackles and two blocks in a solid defensive outing – but his shots on goal were weary and he couldn’t really create much either.

Hugo Boumous – 7

The ATK Mohun Bagan no.10 had a blast in the first half, as he ran the show for his side and showcased great trickery to move past players with ease. He created a couple of great chances with his incisive delivery and played a beautiful flick leading to Manvir’s goal. But then his performance-level dropped in the second half, leading to a topsy-turvy outing.  

Ashique Kuruniyan – 4

Kuruniyan had a very frustrating evening in which his decision-making was constantly put under question. He tormented Ajith Kumar and danced past him on several occasions, but his final pass was underwhelming for the majority. He had one nice shot saved in the first half.

Manvir Singh – 7.5

Manvir looks a man rejuvenated in this ATKMB system, as he thrived in a centre-forward role. He made some smart runs to trouble defenders and linked-up really well with his teammates. The forward finished off a slick counter-attack in emphatic fashion to get his side’s first goal of the season.

Also Read:

• Chennaiyin FC register comeback to beat ATK Mohun Bagan
• ‘Team got distracted’ in second half, claims Juan Ferrando

Dimitri Petratos – 6.5

The Mariners’ new no.9 was a menace with his link-up. His clever late runs, ability to move away from his marker and clever passing helped to open up things for his side. He set up the opener with a great pass to Manvir, but then mellowed out in the second half – leading to a substitution.

Substitutes

Carl McHugh – 6

The Irish midfielder had a late chance to score an equalizer, but saw his goal-bound shot blocked inches off the goal!

Liston Colaco – 6

Colaco added a lot of energy and incisiveness to ATKMB’s attack after coming on, but failed to create anything big. He had a powerful free-kick saved in the dying minutes.

Fardin Ali Molla – N/A

The young striker had a great chance to score in the late minutes, but saw his header from a corner go agonizingly wide.

Chennaiyin FC (by M.Sudharshan) 

Debjit Majumdar - 6.5

Majumder had a busy evening having to be active for the major part of the first half. He made some good saves but looked a bit patchy in the first half. The keeper made a total of six saves in the game.

Narayan Das - 5.5

Narayan initially started as a left-back but after the substitution of Diagne got back to a centre-back role. He couldn't stop Asish Rai to go past him initially but that did not create much damage.

Vafa Hakamaneshi - 6.5

Vafa had a solid game and made nine interceptions overall. Moreover, pairing with Narayan Das, he held back the defence well in the second half.

Fallou Diagne - 7

Diagne looked good in the 58 minutes he played having four clearances to his name. He was the last man standing on most occasions and did not give away many fouls. Diagne had to be substituted to get the team combination right.

Ajith Kumar - 4

The majority of the attacks by Ashique Kuruniyan left Ajith with no answers. The defender lacked pace and couldn't read what Kuruniyan was doing and failed to prevent him to go past.

Jiteshwor Singh - 6

The youngster could be seen running all around the ground from defence to attack and had a decent outing in his debut match. Jiteshwor also put in a few crosses but those were not effective to disturb the ATKMB defence.

Anirudh Thapa - 6

The captain did not look much effective today going out of options. Thapa had a few shots on target but couldn't go past the defence. Also, the captain did not venture back and was only looking to take up the attacking midfield role.

Julius Duker - 7

Duker in his debut enjoyed a solid outing as he held both the attack and the defence throughout. Overall, he made three crucial interceptions and a clearance. 

Prasanth K - 3.5

Prasanth had a poor first outing in Chennaiyin FC colours. He wasn't active in the game having got only 14 touches on the right flank along with poor first touches. 

Petar Sliskovic - 5

Petar Sliskovic couldn't contribute much in the attacking third since there were no quality passes from the midfield. He did not attempt any shots as well in the limited passes he received.

Rahim Ali - 7

Rahim Ali played all around the park in the first half looking to create chances for himself. He succeeded in winning a few duels in the first half but did not finish the attack well. After the arrival of Karikari, he looked settled and put in an inch-perfect finish which ultimately decided the fate of the game.

Substitutes

Edwin Sydney Vanspaul - 6.5

After the arrival of Edwin, the right flank looked solid, helping Ajith control the run of Ashique Kuruniyan. He opened up the gap in ATKMB's defence providing the crucial pass to Karikari.

Akash Sangwan - 6.5

The 26-year-old stepped up in the crucial situation with two quality interceptions and a block.

Kwame Karikari - 8

In the first few minutes after replacing Fallou Diagne, he showed his skills and earned a penalty for his side. He converted the same too! Moreover, he also provided a perfect assist to Rahim Ali sealing the game for Chennaiyin FC.

Sourav Das - 6

Replacing Ajith Kumar he did not have much work to do but rather control the midfield and defence.

Nasser El Khayati (N/A)