ATK Mohun Bagan will face NorthEast United at the Fatorda Stadium on Tuesday in the second leg of the second semi-final of the Indian Super League 2020-21 season.
In the first leg at the GMC Bambolim Stadium, both teams scored on either side of half-time to end the night at parity. David Williams scored an eye-catching goal in the 34th minute, and substitute Idrissa Sylla scored deep in added time to set up a tasty fixture in the second leg of the semi-final.
The Mariners enjoyed a great first season in the ISL as they won 12 of their 20 matches, finishing second only on the head-to-head record with 40 points in the bag. New signings Sandesh Jhingan, Subhasish Bose, and Manvir Singh contributed massively in their first season whilst Roy Krishna was the top scorer with 14 goals to his name in the ongoing league season.
The Highlanders went through a topsy-turvy season as they started the campaign with an unbeaten run of 6 matches before going on a winless streak of 5 matches that saw manager Gerard Nus sacked from his position.
Khalid Jamil took over the club and helped them go on a 9-match unbeaten run that included 6 wins, including a 2-1 victory against ATK Mohun Bagan, helping the Guwahati-based club qualify for the knockout stages of the ISL only the second time in seven seasons.
Team News
The ATK Mohun Bagan manager went for an experimental partnership of Pritam Kotal and Carl McHugh in the middle of the defence in the first leg of the semi-final. Both Sandesh Jhingan and Tiri are expected to return to the starting XI on Tuesday for the Mariners.
The introduction of Sylla and Mashoor Shereef change the nature of the match in favour of NorthEast United in the first leg, and the duo could start in the second leg of the crucial semi-final.
Deshorn Brown is slowly regaining fitness and might make it to the bench on Tuesday after picking up a minor knock in the last league match against Kerala Blasters.
Key Players
On Saturday, Roy Krishna surprisingly failed to find the back of the net, and the Fijian striker is expected to come good in the second leg to help the Mariners reach the final in their maiden ISL season.
Khassa Camara has been one of the signings of the season, playing as the enforcer in the Highlanders midfield, allowing the likes of Lalengmawia and skipper Federico Gallego to create chances for the forwards in the final third of the pitch.
Luis Machado is the top scorer for the Highlanders during the ongoing league season and would be hoping to add to his tally of 7 goals and 2 assists on Tuesday.
Prediction
ATK Mohun Bagan spent freely ahead of the seventh season of the ISL despite the Covid-19 virus halting most economic activities around the world. The Mariners management would be hoping for the top prize in order to justify their high investment in the squad prior to the start of the ISL season.
NorthEast United making it to the playoffs is a rare sight, and the Highlanders fans would be hoping that their team makes it to their first-ever ISL final where they could face the Islanders ,who have lost twice only to NorthEast United in the current ISL season.
