Hugo Boumous’s late penalty sees ATK Mohun Bagan edge out Jamshedpur

ATK Mohun Bagan welcomed Jamshedpur to the Salt Lake Stadium on Thursday as both sides looked to climb up the standings. While the two sides cancelled each other out for the majority of the match a late blunder from Peter Hartley saw the visiting captain sent off which cost his side dearly. Hugo Boumous scored the resulting spot-kick to seal all three points for the Mariners.    

The hosts began on the front foot, as the visitors’ debutant goalie Vishal Yadav was tested early on by Liston Colaco who dribbled past a couple of defenders but in the end, it was a comfortable save that didn’t trouble the custodian much. 

Vishal wasn’t the only one making his debut, as Rafael Crivellaro also made his debut for the Men of Steel. Pritam Kotal also came agonisingly close as he connected to a corner from Boumous but failed to divert it towards the goal and his headed effort sailed over the bar. 

Shortly before the hour mark, Colaco initiated an attack but Hartley was alert to the danger and came up with a textbook sliding tackle to foil the danger. 

The best chance of the first half fell to Aidy Boothroyd’s men, as the home team lost the ball in midfield, and it fell kindly to Ishan Pandita who drove forward but took a heavy touch and gave a chance to Vishal Kaith, who came off his line and denied his compatriot a chance to score.

There was a huge shout for handball towards the end of the half as Kotal diverted the ball near the hand of Jay Emmanuel-Thomas but the referee was not interested at all. It was a cagey first half with neither side able to trouble the scorers. 

Juan Ferrando’s men began the second half just like they did at the start of the match, with an attacking mindset, as Dimitri Petratos tested Yadav from long range but in the end, it proved to be a tame effort. 

Kotal had his pocket picked by Ritwik Das who fed Crivellaro, whose first-time through pass reached Pandita but he blasted well over the target. The Mariners were enjoying some good progress down the right flank, a darting run from Ashish Rai saw the ball being delivered into the danger area but the visiting goalie was equal to it, and a similar outcome came from a cross by Colaco minutes later. 

Pandita’s frustrating night continued as he blasted a first-time effort after being found expertly following a mazy run from Boris Singh. On his debut, Crivellaro lasted nearly an hour, and it was a promising performance from the Brazilian who was replaced by Daniel Chima Chukwu. 

As the game progressed, fatigue started to kick in as both sets of players gave possession away cheaply, which saw the ball exchanging hands very quickly but it resulted in nothing of note for any of the teams. Emmanuel Thomas found Boris free on the right wing who beat a couple of defenders but overcooked his cross as the ball sailed over every single attacking player. 

Boumous showed his quality as he beat three defenders, and executed a give-and-go with Petratos while bearing down on goal but Yadav came out and made a save before the attacker could have a crack at goal. 

A scuffle between Ashique Kuruniyan and Boris saw both players go into the referee’s book, and minutes later Yadav was called into action again as Kiyan Nassiri got on the end of a cross, but could only poke the ball straight into the hands of the debutant. 

While it seemed that the match would end goalless, there was some late drama in store as Hartley’s off-the-ball challenge on Nassiri was spotted by the linesman who raised his flag, signalling to the official. 

The visitors’ captain was given his marching orders, and the Mariners earned a golden chance to score. Up stepped Boumous and duly dispatched the spot-kick to put Ferrando’s side ahead right at the death.

The Men of Steel almost nearly came up with an instant response as Farukh Choudhary picked out Pandita whose bullet header was saved by Kaith, and he collected the ball with ease from the resulting corner. Boothroyd’s men had another chance from close range as Seiminlen Doungel tried to divert a free-kick towards the goal but couldn’t beat the keeper as the home side held on for their third win in a row.