Hyderabad FC and ATK Mohun Bagan played out a 0-0 draw in the first leg of the ISL 2022-23 semi-finals (Twitter)
HFC and ATKMB shared the spoils after a 0-0 draw at the Gachibowli Stadium in Hyderabad as neither side found a goal to take advantage ahead of the second leg in Kolkata.
Hyderabad FC and ATK Mohun Bagan put up a top-notch defensive display in a goalless stalemate in the first leg of their Indian Super League semi-final here on Thursday.
The hosts dominated the first half but the Mariners tested them defensively in the second half.
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In the end, there was no goal for either side to take the lead ahead of the second leg in Kolkata on Monday.
Hyderabad FC launched a series of attacks around the ten-minute mark and Joel Chianese was the first to try his luck from a tight angle.
Vishal Kaith was alert on a nearby post to dislodge the attacker.
Moments later, Nikhil Pujari cut inside from the right flank and went past three ATKMB players before rolling into the path of Borja Herrera, whose shot was blocked by Pritam Kotal.
The third attack was the most promising, and it came in the 11th minute.
From the left, Halicharan Narzari delivered an inch-perfect cross into the box to Chianese, whose powerful header towards the bottom-left corner was parried at full stretch by Kaith.
Three minutes after the half-hour mark, ATKMB registered their first shot on target through Puitia’s first-time effort from the edge of the box, which was easily collected by Gurmeet Singh.
Five minutes later, the Mariners had their best chance of the game when Dimitri Petratos fired a free kick towards the far post, where Colaço lofted the ball across the face of the goal.
With an open goal at his mercy, Cotel came flying but could only rattle the crossbar under pressure from Herrera.
Mohammad Yasir came close to scoring with the opener in the 56th minute, but his effort narrowly missed the post.
Just before the hour mark, the Mariners caught the Hyderabad FC defense off the wrong foot as Manvir galloped down the right and opted to shoot instead of looking for Petratos and Boumas in the box, only for his effort to be saved by Gurmeet. near post.
Both sides made a fresh start in the final quarter of the game as fatigue began to set in and the pace of the game slowed down.
Their respective defenses were still at the top of their games, and the only chance in that period was an ambitious volley from Petratos from around 40 yards out. This was the last play of the first phase.
Both the sides still have an equal chance of advancing to the ISL final as they are tied in the second leg.
They will lock horns again on Monday at the Salt Lake Stadium, where Hyderabad FC lost the second leg last season but lost on aggregate.
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(This story has not been edited by News18 staff and is published from a syndicated news agency feed)