Matchday 14 of ISL 2020-21 season kicked off yesterday, as ATK Mohun Bagan knocked horns with Chennaiyin FC. A late David Williams goal proved to be the difference between the two sides.
In this thread, we will be covering 5 fixtures of Game Week 14 from 21st to 24th January 2021
22nd January
23rd January
24th January
Jamshedpur FC vs Hyderabad FC
Bengalaru FC vs Odisha
ATK Mohun Bagan and Chennaiyin FC clash at the Indian Super League (ISL) 2020-21 on Thursday in a battle between two sides known for playing physically. The match will be held at the Fatorda Stadium in Margao, Goa.
ATK Mohun Bagan have been one of the most consistent sides since the start of ISL 2020-21. However, they come into his encounter on the back of a loss and a draw in their last couple of matches.
Head coach Antonio Lopez Habas will hope for a better performance from their attack who have lacked in goals. Despite the presence of Roy Krishna, David Williams, and Manvir Singh in the frontline, they have scored only 11 goals — the second-lowest tally in the league.
Chennaiyin FC come into the clash against ATK Mohun Bagan after a draw with SC East Bengal. The Marina Machans have won just once in their previous five matches.
With the playoffs spots in his sights, Laszlo will hope that his side is able to get positive results as the second half of the season progresses. Their midfield suffered a big loss after the injury to skipper Rafael Crivellaro. Anirudh Thapa is the leading light in the Chennaiyin FC midfield now and has been controlling the flow and tempo of their game. He has the innate ability to create as well as finish the chances for the team
Chennaiyin FC will go head to head with ATK Mohun Bagan for the second time in the ISL. The two clubs met earlier this season at the GMC Stadium with the game ending in a stalemate.
ATK last season after 11 matches - 21 points
ATKMB this season after 11 matches - 21 points
Antonio Lopez Habas’ team has stayed exactly the same !
Can they go back to winning ways today against Chennaiyin FC tonight? 
What both managers had to say ahead of today’s encounter
The Chennaiyin coach is hoping for an improved display against ATK Mohun Bagan…
“We are working every day and we are organised from the back to the front. If you are not organised at the back, you are not organised in midfield and offensively. If you don’t play offensively, you cannot create chances. We are not just kicking the ball away from our goal. We know that we have not scored many goals and we must be more clinical up front,” Laszlo accepted.
While backing his underwhelming displays of his strikers, the Chennaiyin tactician also conceded that they may need a different approach against ATK Mohun Bagan.
"I’m 100 per cent sure that our strikers have the skill but sometimes just their luck is not there. I believe in these players because I see how they are working everyday. They are not machines and psychologically we have to push them in the right way and extract more out of them. It’s not a long season. Some players take a bit longer but now we have eight games to go and we can reach our target. If we win every game 1-0, it will be enough.
“ATK Mohun Bagan is a team who stays organised and doesn’t concede many goals and play very good counter-attacking football with three to four good offensive players who can change the game. So in this way, I think the game development will be different from East Bengal. So our tactic will also be different. We could use some fresh legs also because we have a game after a few days,” he concluded.
ATK Mohun Bagan coach Antonio Habas is not worried about his team’s current form ahead of facing Chennaiyin in the Indian Super League (ISL) on Thursday.
“[The team feels] no pressure,” he said. “In a championship, you have good and not so good moments. We played against Mumbai and Goa, two teams who have the possibility to win the league. If we want to be on the top, we need to improve in attack.”
“Out of my five seasons in the ISL, I think this is the most balanced in terms of competition between the teams. Any team can win, draw or lose. All teams have got reinforcements and good players. Chennaiyin is a strong team and if they take care of the small details they can win the match,” he stated.
ATKMB 0-0 CFC [45:00 min]
ATKMB looks like they have lost it in the mid field. Sk Sahil is a good player but he is too young to start in this team. Problem is in the middle. The team is not able to transit smoothly. Sahil and machue is staying very deep so passing option isn’t there in the front.
On the other hand changte and thoi was moving swiftly for CFC. But attack is still very much lacking in the middle. The attack is actually looking very ordinary in front of Sandesh and Tiri. These two man are more than brilliant day in day out.
Hopefully goals will come.
IS ROY KRISHNA HAVING AN OFF FORM?
Many sports journalists are saying that Roy krishna is having an off form.
I strongly disagree the reason is 
He is not getting the goal because the mid field is not supplying the ball.
Happy football 
Can’t argue with you on that, especially with the stat record and reasoning provided! 
ATKMB 1-0 CFC
Lucky escape I must say.
ATKMB needs to do something on the following topic.
For CFC early closing strategy back fired them.
ATKMB is not relying on constructive plan of scoring. They are waiting for odd chances. So far it’s working to some extent but I personally am not a fan of this football.
ATK Mohun Bagan claim a deserved win against Chennaiyin, thanks to super-sub David Williams’ header from a corner-kick right at the end. The Mariners close the gap to league leaders Mumbai City to just two points. The Islanders play their game in hand tomorrow against East Bengal.
11 of the 12 goals scored by ATK Mohun Bagan have come in second half, the second most in the current ISL season. Only Hyderabad FC and FC Goa have scored more in the given period (12). Machine.
A competitive contest was on the cards between two teams who were in search of wins in tonight’s Hero ISL match at the Fatorda Stadium. Both ATK Mohun Bagan and Chennaiyin FC produced a fighting defensive display until David Williams popped up with an injury-time winner to seal the win and help Antonio Lopez Habas’ side keep pace with leaders Mumbai City FC.
Highlights - ATK Mohun Bagan 1-0 Chennaiyin FC - Match 66
Post-match Presentation - ATK Mohun Bagan 1-0 Chennaiyin FC - Match 66
After a draw in their last Hero Indian Super League (Hero ISL) 2020-21 game, Mumbai City FC will be eyeing maximum points when they take on SC East Bengal at the Tilak Maidan Stadium in Vasco on Friday. The table-topping Mumbai City side currently find themselves in a strong position and will want to build on their lead at the summit of the league.
Unbeaten in 10 games, Sergio Lobera’s men will be itching to return to the pitch and find the back of the net after failing to score in a goalless draw against Hyderabad FC in their last outing. The last time the Islanders met SC East Bengal in the league, the table-toppers beat the Kolkata club 3-0 in a convincing manner, and they will be hoping for a similar outcome on Friday.
Meanwhile, SC East Bengal themselves will be quietly confident heading into the clash against the league leaders. A lot has happened, and Robbie Fowler’s men have made several improvements since their loss to the Islanders earlier in the campaign.
The Kolkata club, in fact, are currently on a seven-match unbeaten run in the league. However, they’ve only won two out of those seven games and Fowler will know that his side must start converting those draws into wins if they want to make it to the semi-final spots in the second half of the season.
What both Managers had to say going into this game
Mumbai City head coach Lobera said: “I think it will be a mistake if we play against SC East Bengal thinking about our last result. They are a completely different team now. They have improved on various levels. They are a very difficult team. It’s difficult to find spaces in their half [referring to SC East Bengal’s last game].
“…We need to improve. In the last game we could have done better. We are good as far as our place in the table is concerned. But we need to think about every game. We are working a lot to try to prepare in the best way possible for tomorrow’s game,” Mumbai City head coach Lobera said ahead of the game.
East Bengal assistant coach Renedy Singh said: “Mumbai City is a good side and they have been doing really well but we have to concentrate on our own style, the way we have for the last seven matches. I think the boys have worked really hard. It’s not easy to get results. We have seen the first four matches and only after the Kerala match in the first leg, the boys have been doing really well. It’s a process that we cannot skip. We have been in a good process now and we need to get some wins," said SC East Bengal assistant coach Renedy Singh ahead of the game.
The two teams will face each other for the third time. The Red and Golds succumbed to a 0-3 loss to the Islanders earlier in the current season.
The first meeting between these two sides was in the Round of 16 at the 2018 Super Cup. SC East Bengal (earlier known as Kingfisher East Bengal) ran out 2-1 winners.
SC East Bengal form guide: W-D-W-D-D
Mumbai City FC form guide: W-W-W-W-D
