All ATK Mohun Bagan needed to do after Gokulam Kerala lost against Bashundhara Kings was to win the game against Maziya Sports and Recreation Club. The Juan Ferrando-coached side did that convincingly.

ATK Mohun Bagan thrashed Maziya of the Maldives 5-2 on Tuesday at the Salt Lake Stadium in the last group D match, which helped them top the group and seal their place in the inter-zonal semi-finals.

Joni Kauko was the star for the winning side. He not only scored two goals but also helped the team to take control of the midfield. Roy Krishna, Subhasish Bose and Carl McHugh also put their names on the score sheet.

ATK Mohun Bagan’s intentions were clear from the very first minutes of the game. They wanted to put the Maziya defence under pressure. Ferrando’s boys drew first blood in the 26th minute as Kauko put the ball home calmly from the edge of the box.

Eleven minutes later he doubled the lead. When it seemed that the home team will find their third goal before half-time, Pedro Tanausú Dominguez Placeres of Maziya pulled one back.

After the change of ends, ATK Mohun Bagan kept on scoring on a regular basis and didn’t give any chance to Maziya to come back into the game. Krishna (56’), Subhasish (58’) and McHugh (71’) put the match beyond Maziya’s grip. Pedro scored his and his team’s second to reduce the margin.

Ferrando chose the same starting eleven which had featured in their last game against Bashundhara Kings.

Ferrando sounded happy with the result and he also thanked fans for their support. “It is good that we have qualified for the knockout stage. It is all about enjoying the game. I would like to thank our supporters who were behind us in all the matches,” the ATK Mohun Bagan coach said at the post match media conference.

Earlier, in the first match of the day, Bashundhara Kings beat Gokulam Kerala FC 2-1 at the same venue. Captain Robson Azevedo da Silva was outstanding for Bashundhara — he scored one brilliant goal (36’) and set up another for Nuha Marong (54’).

Jourdaine Fletcher (75’) pulled one back for Gokulam Kerala, but it was not enough as another effort from the Jamaican was kept out by Bashundhara goalkeeper Anisur Rahman. The goalkeeper made a few crucial saves which helped his team win the game.

Both teams went close to scoring within the first five minutes with Robinho seeing an effort deflected wide at one end and Jithin MS just missingat the other.

But the Bangladeshi side took the initiative from then on, racking up 14 shots to three in the first half, seven of which were taken by Robinho.

Brazilian Robinho was virtually a one-man attack for Bashundhara and the only surprise when he opened the scoring at the 36th minute was the brilliance of the strike, as he tricked his way past a pair of defenders before curling in a sensational 20-yard effort.