ATK Mohun Bagan boss Juan Ferrando hails the character shown by his players in ISL Final triumph over Bengaluru FC

ATK Mohun Bagan clinch the Indian Super League trophy after they defeated Bengaluru FC 4-3 on penalties in the finals at the Jawaharlal nehru Stadium in Goa. Both the teams were unseparated even at the end of extratime when Vishal Kaith proved to be the difference in the shootout.

Dimitri Petratos scored the opening goal from a spot-kick to hand ATKMB the lead. However Sunil Chhetri restored parity right before half-time break. Roy Krishna scored from a corner-kick to send Bengaluru FC ahead in the second half but Petratos levelled things up when ATKMB got yet another penalty, taking the game to extra time.

Overall it was a very rocky season for the Mariners as they dealt with injury issues and wavering form of some players. Overall the final match was also like their season as Juan Ferrando had to be constantly on his toes to make formation changes or put in some fresh legs to defend the scoreline. But he credits the players for trusting him and each other and hence they have won the ISL trophy.

“Everybody knows that the game was very difficult. After the 1-2 score, the team was in difficult moments, (we had) injuries, physical problems but at the end of the day, they are fighting. They were fighting till the last minute. After 2-2, we tried to win the match in the extra team also. This cup is for the players. Sometimes, it is necessary to explain the reasons for what happened because the players trusted this team, the players wanted to do their best till the end. They won the trophy,” Ferrando shared at post-match press conference.

The Spanish head coach shared how everyone is delighted that they had won the trophy but he reminisces the difficult times when every win was a challenge for him especially with numerous injury concerns. He understands the areas they still need to improve and will collectively work on it.

“Obviously today I’m happy because we won the trophy, but people forget difficult matches. The team has shown good character and motivation in all those difficult moments. Of course, we need to improve and change a lot of things. But showing character is the most important and the basic thing in football. (They did that),“he added.

Ferrando thanked the club and the management for sticking by him during the tough situations. He shared how difficult it was for him and the players to show character and rise up to the challenge. “I am happy because the team, the people in the club, trusted me in difficult moments, and also the players, in difficult moments, wanted to do the best. They were working very hard in training.”

Lastly the Spanish tactician shared that they will now look towards the Super Cup and feels that it is also a very important tournament. He understands that he is at the club to help them win trophies. Hence he will be fully committed towards that.

“Now everybody is happy. But the players know that from Monday, we will start talking about the Hero super cup. It’s important to win the Hero super cup.This is the reason why I am in this club. Ofcourse, we improve on the details.We try to do the best in the Hero super cup and win. We are here for this reason,” he concluded.

As the season came to an end, Odisha FC’s Diego Mauricio won the Golden Boot, Vishal Kaith took home the Golden Gloves and Lallianzuala Chhangte won the Hero of the league award for his outstanding performances. Lastly Bengaluru FC’s Sivasakthi Narayanan won the Emerging Player award.