ATK dash FC Goa hopes of qualifying for the ISL semifinals

FATORDA: FC Goa had never defeated Atletico de Kolkata in the Indian Super League and it remained that way as Zico’s side slumped to a 1-2 loss at the Nehru Stadium on Thursday.
The home team needed to win their remaining three matches in order to have any chance of qualification for the semifinal play-offs and that slim hope vanished in the dying minutes when Stephen Pearson nailed the match-winner for the visitors.
Striker Juan Belencoso gave Kolkata the lead in the 28th minute after heading in Abinash Ruidas’ cross from the left. After much probing, Goa equalized with only 10 minutes from the end of regulation time through Mandar Rao Dessai.
Kolkata move up to second position in the standings with 18 points from 12 matches while FC Goa remain at the bottom with 11 from the same number. Zico’s team now travel to Delhi on Sunday followed by their final game of the season at home against defending champions Chennaiyin FC on December 1.
With Zico’s attacking philosophy, FC Goa were always a threat going forward. Unlike the earlier matches, they missed the flair and drive that Rafael Coelho provided as he was given very little space to operate.
Gregory Arnolin was back in the side and led the team but the defence looked edgy from the start, allowing Juan to take a feeble shot early on. Javier Lara was then denied by keeper Laxmikant Kattamani on two occasions.
With the all-win psychological advantage, Kolkata coach Jose Molina’s wards took every opportunity to exploit it. The hosts’ fortress fell just before the half-hour mark. The visitors showed more fluency using the one-touch pass effectively to fox the Goa defence, utilizing the flanks well. Left-winger Abinash sent in a delightful ball over Brazilian defender Rafael Dumas as Kattimani could only watch Juan tower over all to nod home.
FC Goa ran out of steam as Kolkata took control. Romeo Fernandes and Joffre Gonzalez did come close to scoring but their efforts were not good enough to trouble Debjit Majumder in the Kolkata goal.
Former Portugal international Helder Postiga came agonizingly close but his powerful header rocked the bar from a corner by Lara, their eighth in a total of nine in the first session.
Minutes after the restart, Zico came up with a double substitution as Keenan Almeida and Debarata Roy made way for Robin Singh and Raju Gaekwad respectively.
The match sparked to life only in the 67th minute with Romeo’s promising essay missing the target by a whisker but it was another Goan lad, Mandar, that gave them the equalizer with a delightful left-footer in the 80th minute.
There was high drama in the final minutes as Goa went all out. However, Kolkata substitute Sameehg Doutie made the difference. The South African first found the post in the added time but minutes later set up Stephen for the match-winner.