ATK Mohun Bagan boss Juan Ferrando satisfied with a tough victory over Abahani Dhaka as they confirm their AFC Cup berth

ATK Mohun Bagan booked a place in the main stage of the AFC Cup after they defeated six time Bangladesh Premier League champions Abahani Limited Dhaka. A hat trick from David Williams saw the Mariners win 3-1 against the Sky Blues as they booked their berth in the AFC Cup main draw alongside Indian outfit Gokulam Kerala.

ATK Mohun Bagan head coach Juan Ferrando was satisfied with his players as he felt it was a very difficult win but his team fought their way through to the main draw of the AFC Cup. “I’m happy because it was a difficult win. We had a lot of chances in the first half, but things got difficult after it became 2-1. The team had a lot of possession, but it got tough. I’m happy because we achieved our target and we’re in the group stages,” Ferrando told the media.

After a strong first half, ATK Mohun Bagan lost all the control in the second half allowing Abahani Dhaka to attack as they even pulled one back. When asked about complacency, Ferrando shared, “We weren’t relaxed at any point because the opposition decided on high pressing and we had to change the formation for that. It was difficult for us in the build-up to find the third. It was difficult to play normally.”

The Spaniard shared how winning 5-0 was not that enjoyable as they did not improve. Whereas the win against Abahani saw his men fight it out as they only had a slender lead in between before Williams scored his third goal.

“At this moment, the team improved on their game. When the team won 5-0, they didn’t improve, but they improved from this one. I was scared after it was 2-1, but as a coach, I knew that this situation would improve this team and at this moment, I can talk about big challenges ahead.”

Hat trick hero David Williams also was pretty satisfied with the win as he said after the game, “It was a tough game. We played well in patches, we had a few points when we were under pressure, but we played well in a lot of the game. In the difficult situations we came out on top and we’re happy.”

ATK Mohun Bagan will join Maziya Sports and Recreation, Bashundhara Kings and reigning I-League champion Gokulam Kerala FC in the group stage of the AFC Cup that will take place in May.