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A month ago, ATK Mohun Bagan were regarded as a legitimate contender for the Indian Super League Shield, alongside Mumbai City FC and Hyderabad FC. Despite suffering several injuries to key members of the squad, Juan Ferrando’s side kept fighting and grinding out results, losing only twice in their opening ten games.
But that hunger and desire appear to have faded since the turn of the year, as they are now vying to finish in the top six. The Mariners are fifth in the table, but Odisha FC and FC Goa are within striking distance of capitalizing on their mistakes, while Bengaluru FC have already taken advantage of the situation.
Burning questions have been posed in Ferrando’s way, as he has failed to find solutions to different dynamics thrown at him. In short, things just aren’t going according to ATK Mohun Bagan’s plans.
In what was portrayed as a season to fight the frontrunners, the Mariners are now faltering at the business end of the season. So, let’s take a look at the reasons behind their recent struggles.
#1 ATK Mohun Bagan’s misfiring attack
The primary talking point in terms of the Mariners’ struggles is their misfiring attack. Dimitri Petratos has been their talisman, scoring eight goals and further assisting six times. However, the forwards around him have failed to live up to expectations.
Liston Colaco and Manvir Singh played a huge role in ATK Mohun Bagan’s success last year, with the former scoring eight, while the latter found the net on six occasions. But Liston has only scored once this season, while Manvir, who was injured for over a month, has scored just twice.
Hugo Boumous has also struggled to make an impact in recent games. Moreover, the 27-year-old has not featured in the last three outings, further highlighting Juan Ferrando’s problems. Only the bottom-placed teams - NorthEast United and Jamshedpur FC - have scored fewer goals than the Mariners in the ISL 2022-23 season.
The problem, however, does not seem to be chance creation, but rather a poor conversion rate. Only Mumbai City FC have had more shots than ATKMB, but the Kolkata giants have the least goals per shot on target in the league.
Confidence in front of the goal could be a reason for their struggles and the Spanish tactician will hope that his Indian forwards find their form.
#2 Juan Ferrando’s struggles to find a suitable system
As mentioned above, ATK Mohun Bagan have not been at their best in attack. But this could also be down to Ferrando’s tinkering to find the best system that suits his players. He has preferred a 4-2-3-1 formation with an impetus on playing defensive-minded midfield pivots, while the four forwards have the freedom to attack the spaces ahead.
But Colaco, Manvir Singh, and Ashique Kuruniyan lacked the support they needed when they burst forward. Their cautious approach has also led to fewer players in the box when a winger or full-back delivers crosses from the flanks. Although their defense has been rock solid, their opponents have figured out their attacking patterns, which makes them predictable.
In their last game against Hyderabad FC, Ferrando experimented with a back-five formation, playing Asish Rai and Manvir Singh as wing-backs. Liston and Petratos played upfront, but despite creating opportunities, the Mariners failed to test the keeper regularly.
Teams competing for the top six spots certainly have a structured tactical setup to get the best out of their squad, so the signs are not good for ATK Mohun Bagan.
#3 New signings failing to hit the ground running
Ahead of the winter transfer window, the Mariners faced several injury troubles. The likes of Joni Kauko, Florentin Pogba (out of the season), Manvir Singh, and Deepak Tangri were sidelined for the majority of the first half of the season.
With that said, they went out strong and added replacements to the squad to boost their depth. The experienced players - Federico Gallego, Slavko Damjanovic, Puitea, and Glan Martins - joined in January, but their additions have not improved the team's performance.
Gallego has replaced Boumous in the starting lineup in the last three games but has struggled to fit into the system. Damjanovic, meanwhile, has only started once for the Mariners. Puitea and Martins have brought a defensive presence to midfield, but they do not possess the attacking qualities of Joni Kauko.
ATK Mohun Bagan are unquestionably in trouble with only two games remaining, as they will need to win those games to qualify. Kerala Blasters will be a huge test, followed by a local derby against East Bengal, where their playoff fate will be decided.
