By Ajay Majumder
KOLKATA: Mohun Bagan will be keen to get their Calcutta Premier Division – A campaign back on track when they take on United Sports Club tomorrow at Mohun Bagan Ground.
Having started the season with a lot of promise, Mohun Bagan have lost the plot midway as they were held golless by Peerless SC and the recent controversy that occurred in their last game against Tollygunge Agragami over three dissallowed goals which saw the game abandoned on Monday, have affected team’s morale.
However, Mohun Bagan coach Sankarlal Chakraborty knows it very well that a win against United SC can prove to be crucial for his side at this critical juncture to rebuild confidence and come out of the recent slump phase, thus the gaffer strictly advised players to only concentrate on the task at hand.
“We are not thinking about thing which are beyond our control. What we can do is give our best and I have full faith in my team and they are fully capable of a comeback,” coach Sankarlal said.
Playing in front of home fans should be the morale booster for The Mariners, but the likes of Darryl Duffy and Daniel Bidemi will have to pull up their socks or else Bagan could find themselves out of title contention.
“It is not that we are playing bad to drop points, but rather our boys are not able to capitalize on chances that came their way. I hope they won’t repeat the same mistakes and put up a improved performance tomorrow,” Sankarlal added.
United SC, on the other hand, did not had ideal start as they lost four games back-to-back which led to their coach Subrata Bhattacharya’s premature resignation from the team. However, change in team management brought luck for The Purple Brigade as they recovered under new caoch Partha Sen with successive victories over George Telegraph and Bhawanipore.
Facing Mohun Bagan, United SC will rely on league’s top scorer Suhair V.P. and Eric Brown for goals upfront. Joining them will be the likes Budhiram Tudu, Sankar Oraon and Manotosh Chakladar who will hold the key in midfield while the experienced Bello Rasaq will lead the back-line with Sangram Mukherjee standing under the frame.
“United SC will be a tough opponent. They have a good blend of youth and experience but with all said and done we don’t have any other option except win and we are going all out to achieve that.” Sankarlal concluded.
The game at Mohun Bagan Ground kicks off at 5.30 pm on Friday and it will be televised live on ETV News Bangla.
