ISL 2020-21 | We had to correct the situation of central midfielders and strikers, feels Antonio Habas
ATK Mohun Bagan coach Antonio Habas has asserted that his team will need to do a course correction in terms of positioning of their central midfielders and strikers against East Bengal. Meanwhile, Kibu Vicuna has implied that attackers and midfielders didn’t participate too much in the final third.
It was a comprehensive victory for ATK Mohun Bagan despite Kerala Blasters having 69.3 percent possession of the ball in the first half. Gary Hooper was left isolated in one corner while Roy Krishna and Sahal Abdul Samad failed to convert some easy chances to give the game to ATK on a platter. ATK pushed their game beyond limit in the final third quarter to leave KBFC in a dire need of stepping up which never happened. However, the victory doesn’t let Habas forget the fact that their midfielders and strikers could have done a better job, something he asked them to pull off in the next game against SC East Bengal.
“We had to correct the situation of the central midfielders and the strikers. After the substitution [of Pronay Halder with Manvir Singh], we improved. We had to press the opponents and I feel this result is good for us. Kerala played well but I am very happy with the three points today,” Habas said in the post-match press conference.
Although the Costa Nhamoinesu-led defense did well to restrict the chances created by the ATK Mohun Bagan unit, Roy Krishna missing a chance in the first few minutes and further no players stepping up at crucial junctures resulted in Vicuna’s plans failing miserably. Vicuna stated that his team will do well in the next few matches as they are slowly coming to terms after a non-existent pre-season.
“Our plan for the game was very clear. We are happy with the performance of the team. Unfortunately, we lost because of that goal. We had some chances to score but we didn’t convert so now we have to focus on the next game. We have to improve in the final third. Our attackers and midfielders didn’t participate too much in the final third. So we have to try to improve this aspect of the game,” the Spaniard said.
