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Mohammedan Sporting Club look to dent a blow in East Bengal Club’s ambitions of securing eighth consecutive Calcutta Football League title when they lock horns in the CFL – Premier Division ‘A’ on Saturday afternoon.
It was like a replay of the CFL match last season when Mohammedan Sporting and East Bengal battled it out for top honors in Kolkata football. However, the only difference this time around is that Mohammedan Sporting have fallen far behind in the championship race and pride will be the only thing at stake in Kalyani Stadium.
Nonetheless, Mohammedan Sporting Coach Biswajit Bhattacharya insists that his players will approach the match with the same intensity and hopes of resurrecting their campaign.
“We have to play with the same intensity. We are professionals. When we go on the pitch, we must respect the jersey, the fans and the honor of club. Our fate may have been sealed but we have to go out and do our best to win because that’s what we deserve,” coach Bhattacharya said on the eve of the clash.
Currently in third place with 13 points from seven matches, the Black Panthers coming into the tie with an emphatic 6-0 win over Railway FC in their last match and will be full of confidence at the prospect of upsetting East Bengal, who are on second with 18 points from six matches.
“It will be an enticing affair and the team which can handle the pressure better will be able to prevail. East Bengal are a very good side and they have shown how easily they can dominate teams. But we have shown that we are a team not to be taken lightly. We will go hard at them enforcing our own style of attacking flare,” the gaffer added.
The match pits the CFL’s best attack against it’s best defence. Mohammedan Sporting have scored 23 goals this campaign while East Bengal have allowed only three.
However, their leaky defence will continue to be the main cause of worry for coach Bhattacharya, who knows they will need to defend better against East Bengal if they are to contain the threat of Mahmoud Al Amna, Willis Plaza and the others.
Senior footballer Dipendu Biswas echoed his coach’s comments and said, “East Bengal is always a tough opponent. They have the right balance but if you see the kind of performances our team has given in the past, they will carry a lot of confidence into the game. These players are experienced enough and they have the belief that they can do it.”
On the team news front, coach Bhattacharya will have a full squad at his disposal with skipper Rana Gharami returning from a one-match suspension that caused him to miss the clash against Railway FC.
After making five changes in the previous match, the gaffer could freshen up his team again to keep up with the demands of a busy schedule consisting of three games in the space of only five days.
For the record, Mohammedan Sporting last defeated East Bengal in the CFL on August 10, 2014, since then East Bengal haven’t lost a single match in CFL and are unbeaten in 34 straight matches, a streak that the Black Panthers will be eager to end despite being out of the championship race.
