Siviero’s late equalizer helps Hyderabad rescue a point against ATK Mohun Bagan in a 2-2 draw
The last gasp equalizer from Javi Siverio helped Hyderabad to come from behind and salvage a point against ATK Mohun Bagan in a thrilling 2-2 draw in ‘Match 50’ of the 2021-22 Indian Super League season. Besides Siverio, Bartholomew Ogbeche was on target for the Nizams while a David Williams strike and Asish Rai’s own goal comprised the two ATK Mohun Bagan goals.
The Mariners’ head coach Juan Ferrando raised a few eyebrows with his starting XI, as he picked Williams over Roy Krishna while Prabir Das replaced Subhasish Bose as the left-back picked up a slight knock in the last game.
On the other hand, Hyderabad head coach Manolo Marquez fielded an unchanged starting eleven from their last win against Odisha.
Williams took all but twelve seconds to repay the trust Ferrando showed in him as quick one-touch passing allowed the Australian striker to get in space and pull the trigger from outside the box. Hyderabad custodian Laxmikant Kattimani got both his hands to the ball but he was beaten by the sheer power in the shot.
At the other end of the pitch, ATK Mohun Bagan’s custodian Amrinder Singh continued his bizarre form as he failed to gather a harmless looping cross and palmed it away to a lurking Ogbeche, who calmly slotted it home to restore parity in the 18th minute
Amrinder seemed to be playing with fire, as only eight minutes later, he miscued a pass that landed straight to Ogbeche, who was not clinical enough this time, saving the keeper from the humiliation and keeping the scoreline at 1-1.
The second half began with the same intensity as both teams looked desperate to bag all three points from this game. Williams continued his fine form as he combined brilliantly with Hugo Boumous in the 55th minute and laid off a good pass for the Frenchman, whose effort was blocked by Hitesh Sharma.
It was then Hyderabad’s turn to put their foot down as Edu Garcia pulled the trigger from the left flank a few minutes later, but after letting his team down previously, Amrinder somewhat redeemed himself by pulling off a decent save.
Manvir Singh had a decent chance to regain the lead for the Mariners only four minutes later when he found himself through on goal but the Indian international dragged his shot wide.
However, he did not rue the missed opportunity for long, as ATK Mohun Bagan’s persistent attacks were eventually rewarded in the 64th minute when Williams skipped past Akash Mishra to send in a brilliant cross which found the head of Joni Kauko, whose effort went into the goal after taking a deflection off Rai on the way.
Having got the elusive lead, the Mariners had a golden opportunity of doubling their lead hardly seven minutes later when a fantastic backheel from Williams found Liston Colaco one-on-one with Kattimani, but he failed to get the perfect swerve on the ball to put it past the Hyderabad custodian.
Amrinder Singh had a bittersweet day in goal for the Mariners
Just when one would have thought the game is all but done, Siverio did the unthinkable to snatch a crucial point for the Nizams. From a short free-kick, Akash Mishra came up with a pinpoint ball in the box for Siverio whose blind run left Tiri in sixes and sevens. The ATK Mohun Bagan defender tried all he could to stop his Spanish compatriot but Siverio got his head to the ball to find the back of the net.
With the much-needed solitary point in the bag, Hyderabad has secured pole position, and will now take on Kerala Blasters at the Tilak Maidan on Sunday. On the other hand, the third-placed side ATK Mohun Bagan will lock horns with Odisha at the Fatorda Stadium on Saturday.