ATK, Bengaluru in search of Christmas gift

ATK will look to make its strong home form count when it takes on defending champion Bengaluru FC in a Indian Super League tie at the Vivekananda Yuba Bharati Krirangan here on Wednesday.

With the league at the half-way stage, this battle between two teams in the top four promises a lot of action.

Antonio Habas’ ATK will hope to utilise its strong home form to its advantage against a tough Bengaluru outfit.

The Kolkata-based side is the only team to remain unbeaten at home this season and has scored the most goals at home (10). To top it all, Habas’ side has been exemplary in defence at home, conceding just the three goals - joint-fewest in ISL. And it has faced just five shots on target at home this season.

However, its record will be put to test against Carles Cuadrat’s Bengaluru FC which is unbeaten away from home this season.

“We have to compare them (Bengaluru) as the best team this season. For us it’s a very important match. We can know our level by playing against last season’s champions. It’s very important for me and my players,” said Habas. With eight goals for the season, Roy Krishna is ATK’s primary weapon up front and he has hit a purple patch of late with five of his eight goals coming in the last four matches. With a supporting cast that features the likes of David Williams, Javi Hernandez, Mandi Sosa and Edu Garcia, Krishna will be confident of getting good service.

Bengaluru has a great record over ATK, having won all four games against it so far. In fact, ATK has scored just one goal past Bengaluru in those matches.

Bengaluru’s defence has been exemplary this season as well, having conceded just five goals in nine matches. It has six clean sheets to boot. The battle between a free-scoring ATK attack and a tight Bengaluru defence will play a key role in shaping the course of the match.

In many ways, Bengaluru’s defence has been the saving grace for its struggling attack. Though it has scored just 11 goals in the ISL this season (fifth fewest), Bengaluru has the third-best goal difference in the league (+6).

Apart from Sunil Chhetri, rest of the attackers have flattered to deceive, and Bengaluru has seen its output upfront decline from the previous seasons.

Despite featuring pacy wingers in Udanta Singh and Ashique Kuruniyan, Bengaluru has struggled to convert crosses. Despite having put in more than 100 crosses, it has scored just one goal from them.

Bengaluru is placed second on the table (16 points) and Cuadrat will count on his team’s tactical discipline to pull it through against an incisive ATK side and regain the top spot.

“Of course, we have a plan for the game. We’ll try to get them under control. They have two very natural forward players (Krishna and Williams). I think it’s very clever from ATK to bring players who are playing together,” said Cuadrat.

ATK which is a point behind the Blues will be smarting after a loss to FC Goa and a disappointing 2-2 draw against bottom-placed Hyderabad FC. Habas will be desperate to return to winning ways.

For Cuadrat, it’s about the celebrations this festive season. “I hope it’s a special day as it’s Christmas day and we hope to give a present to all the football fans in India (with a win),” he said.