ISL 2020-21, NorthEast United vs ATK Mohun Bagan: David Williams' trickery, Camara's tireless running and other talking points

There's just something about knockout football that gets the pulse racing. Leagues are all well and good, but the drama and excitement that accompanies a do-or-die match is truly exhilarating, and there was a fair bit of that on display in the Indian Super League on Saturday, as NorthEast United scored a stoppage-time equaliser in the first leg of the semi-final to deny ATK Mohun Bagan a win.

Here are the talking points from the match:

An ode to David Williams

David Williams has flown under the radar to an extent since joining ATK in 2019, through no fault of his own. The Australian attacker joined ATK at more or less the same time as Roy Krishna, and has often played second fiddle to the more prolific Fijian striker, despite chipping in with several goals and assists of his own. Against NorthEast, however, it was Williams who found the breakthrough, with some exquisite skill and a whole lot of determination.

David Joel Williams of ATKMB during Semi-Final 2, 1st Leg of the 7th season of the Hero Indian Super League between NorthEast United FC and ATK Mohun Bagan held at the GMC Stadium, Bambolim, Goa, India on the 6th March 2021. Photo by Deepak Malik / Sportzpics for ISL

The Australian raced on to a ball from Krishna at the edge of the penalty area, and with a fiendishly clever dummy, he sent poor Nim Dorjee Tamang running off into the sunset, before dispatching a low, driven shot through the legs of a hapless Dylan Fox and past a sprawling Subhasish Roy Chowdhury in the NorthEast goal. It was a three-second display of pure genius, and it will live long in the memory of ATK fans, especially if they make it through to the final.

Never say die, NorthEast

NorthEast United's unbeaten run in the ISL now stretches to a whopping 11 games on the trot, and it's not hard to see why that is. Under Khalid Jamil, they've developed a real fighting spirit, running their lungs out until the very end of matches in the hopes of salvaging something. In fact, in those 11 games, this is the fourth time they've scored after the 80-minute mark to either avoid a defeat or secure a win, including a 94th minute Luis Machado equaliser against Chennaiyin, and two strikes from Federico Gallego, an equaliser in the 83rd minute and a winner in the 81st minute, against Goa and ATK respectively.

Better late than never for @NEUtdFC ‼️#ISLMoments #NEUATKMB #HeroISL #LetsFootball https://t.co/zi6BhKGi31 pic.twitter.com/xwsjGLzJiU

— Indian Super League (@IndSuperLeague) March 6, 2021

Their willingness to exert such superhuman effort and chase lost causes well into the dying embers of matches is one of the main reasons that NorthEast are currently where they are, despite having an arguably less impressive team on paper than everyone else in the playoffs. It was this same willingness that led to their equalising goal, with Idrissa Sylla heading home a wonderful Luis Machado cross from close range in the 93rd minute, a goal that will give NorthEast a huge boost going into the crucial second leg.

Run Khassa Camara, run!

Football is a sport that tends to cast a spotlight on more attacking, creative players, while the real heroes, the defenders and midfielders that work their socks off often go unnoticed. One such player is NorthEast's Khassa Camara, who puts in a real shift every single time he steps out onto the pitch, which was exactly what he did in the first leg of the semi-final. From the first minute to the last, Camara was in constant motion, seeking out ATK's more creative-minded players and breaking up fledgeling attacks before they could turn into anything dangerous.

Khassa Camara's dogged defending and tireless pressing helped NorthEast relieve the pressure on their backline and transition quickly from defense to attack. Twitter@IndSuperLeague

Camara's hard work took a lot of the pressure off of the centreback pairing of Benjamin Lambot and Dylan Fox, and his doggedness was one of the main reasons behind ATK Mohun Bagan only having two shots on target. Camara completed two out of the four tackles he attempted and successfully intercepted a pass on three separate occasions. He was also crucial in NorthEast's attempts to quickly transition from defence to attack, completing 50 passes, more than anyone else in the team. But perhaps his influence on the match can best be summed up by another metric, that of total touches taken. Taking 79 touches of the ball, not only was Camara the most omnipresent player of his team, but also of the match overall, his total surpassing Javier Hernandez's 73 touches.

Manvir the man for India?

While Roy Krishna and David Williams were predictably good for ATK, a player that really impressed was young Manvir Singh. The Indian, who has widely been touted as a successor to Sunil Chhetri in the national team, showed exactly why so many people have such great expectations of him. Hugging the right touchline throughout the match, Manvir was a real thorn in the side of NorthEast, and left-back Gurjinder Kumar will likely be having nightmares of the ATK attacker running past him for at least a couple of weeks.

Manvir's pace and direct approach made him very difficult to handle, and he often found himself in acres of space out wide, giving him the opportunity to whip in some deadly crosses. Unfortunately for him, none of those balls ended up in the back of the goal, but it was still heartening to see an Indian player display such fearsome attacking prowess. Manvir also had a great opportunity to take a shot at goal, being played through on goal courtesy of a delightful ball over the top of NEUTD's backline by Williams, but the angle was acute and he ended up lashing his shot wide for a goal kick.

Gallego's efforts in vain

Gallego has proven time and again that he is NorthEast United's primary creative outlet, and it was clear to see in the first leg of the semi-final. As of right now, the Indian Super League stats page about the match says that he created four chances, but in reality, it felt almost like 10. He was an ever-present threat on set pieces, delivering the ball into danger areas with stunning consistency, and it's a shame that not a single one of the umpteen chances he set up was converted by his teammates. However, if he's given the same degree of freedom in the second leg, it seems likely that he could cause ATK a whole lot more problems.