Bengaluru FC have edged past ATK in the first leg of the Semifinal of Indian Super League this season. ATK will certainly be disappointed as they have not been able to score an away goal in this match. They have been the better side in the field for most of the time in the pitch.
The manager of Bengaluru FC, Carlos Cuadrat has fielded his side with a formation of 3-5-2. Rahul Bheke, Juanan and Alberto Serran have been playing as three central defenders for Bengaluru FC. Gurpreet Singh Sandhu has been there as the goalkeeper of the home side. Nishu Kumar and Harmonjot Singh Khabra have been deployed as two wing-backs. Suresh Wangjam, Erik Paartalu and Dimas Delgado have been playing as three central midfielders. Deshorn Brown and Sunil Chhetri have been deployed as two centre forwards in this match.
On the other hand, the manager of ATK, Antonio Habas has fielded his side with a usual 3-5-2 formation. Arindam Bhattacharya has been there in the goal of the away side. Sumit Rathi, John Johnson and Pritam Kotal have been there in the central defence of ATK in this match. Prabir Das and Michael Soosairaj have been deployed as two wingbacks in this match. Javi Hernandez, Michael Regin and Edu Garcia have been deployed as three central midfielders in this match. Roy Krishna and David Williams have been there as two centre forwards at the upfront of the field.
It has been a tactical battle between two good managers. ATK have tried to implement their counter-attacking strategy again in this match. David Williams has netted the ball once in the first half. However, the goal has been cancelled by the referee and there has been a handball during the build-up process. Deshorn Brown has scored the first goal of the match for Bengaluru FC at the 31st minute of the match. After conceding the goal, ATK have tried a lot to get the equaliser. However, they have failed to convert their opportunities into Goal in the first half of the match. The first half has ended with a scoreline of 1-0 in favour of Bengaluru FC.
Alberto Serran has been replaced by Kevaughn Frater at the beginning of the second half. Nilli has been introduced in place of Deshorn Brown at the 60th minute of the match. Kevaughn Frater has been shown a yellow card at the 74th minute of the match for persistent fouling. Nishu Kumar has fouled Roy Krishna just at the edge of the penalty box and he has been shown a direct red card at the 83rd minute of the match. In the second half, ATK could have easily got one away goal.
However, the defensive unit of Bengaluru FC have stayed strong until the end of 90 minutes. The match has ended with a scoreline of 1-0 in favour of Bengaluru FC. ATK will now play at their home ground in the next week. The aggregate scoreline of two legs will decide the winner who will qualify for the Final of Indian Super League this season.
