In an enthralling display of attacking football, FC Goa trumped Juan Ferrando's ATK Mohun Bagan 3-0 at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium to go third in the Indian Super League (ISL) standings on Sunday, November 20.
Goals from Aibanbha Dohling, Mohamed Fares Arnaout, and Noah Wail Sadaoui were enough to hand the Gaurs their first-ever ISL victory against the Kolkata giants.
Ahead of the game, with an injury to Saviour Gama, head coach Carlos Pena opted to start Marc Valiente at the heart of the backline and push Dohling to the left-back position. Meanwhile, in-form Sadaoui made way for Redeem Tlang on the wings.
Right from the start, the home side looked hungry and in control of the proceedings. In the opening exchanges itself, FC Goa had four glorious opportunities but a lack of finishing from their end and crucial saves from Vishal Kaith kept ATKMB in the game.
In the 22nd minute, it seemed like the Goans had pulled ahead when Alvaro Vazquez tucked the ball into an open net, but the referee blew the whistle to indicate offside. Neither side could break the deadlock in the first half, but it was FCG who looked the likeliest to do so. They had five shots on target in the first 45 minutes.
Clinical FC Goa humble ATK Mohun Bagan in the second half
Coming out after the break, FC Goa continued their relentless attacking football and were soon rewarded for it. In the 50th minute, Anwar Ali played a delicious diagonal long ball and Aibanbha Dohling was quick to latch on to it down the left flank. The full-back evaded his marker and unleashed an effort into the top right corner.
The floodgates had opened and in the 76th minute, the Gaurs doubled their lead through Fares Arnaout, who had come off the bench minutes earlier. Edu Bedia whipped in a clinical corner and the Syrian centre-back beat Brendan Hamill to the ball before heading it home.
Six minutes later, another substitute made his impact felt immediately. Noah Sadaoui, who has been in fine form, received the ball outside the opposition box and unleashed a looping effort. Kaith failed to keep the shot out despite getting a hand to it.
Although the Mariners turned the ball home in the dying moments of the game, the move was ruled offside. Goa's dominant win now takes them to third in the points table with 12 points. Meanwhile, Juan Ferrando's side are now sixth in the rankings with 10 points from six games.