Defending champion Mohun Bagan SG will be looking to push ahead its midseason revival when it meets neighbour NorthEast United FC in a matchweek-15 fixture of the ISL-10 at home in Salt Lake Stadium here on Saturday.
After a string of setbacks towards the end of the League’s first phase that saw the side losing three successive matches and also its head coach in Juan Ferrando, Mohun Bagan SG started its recovery process by recalling Anotnio Lopez Habas.
The seasoned Spaniard, still considered the most successful coach in ISL, reversed the rot immediately on his arrival as the Mariners returned to winning ways while picking up seven points in its last three outings.
The best of it came in the last outing where Mohun Bagan ended the 12-match unbeaten run of FC Goa at the latter’s home in Fatorda Stadium with a 1-0 win.
This will put the impetus on the side of Mohun Bagan as it prepares to take on the challenge of North East United, which is also making impressive progress under its Spanish gaffer Juan Pedro Benali.
The Highlanders, which has remained unbeaten in the last four matches, will be counting on its 3-2 win against the other Kolkata giant East Bengal FC in its previous match (at home in Guwahati) as it plans to avenge the 1-3 loss it suffered against the Mariners in the first phase in its own backyard.
Mohun Bagan, on 26 points from 13 matches, stands to gain an improvement in its present third position in the current league standings if it is able to ensure the full quota of points against NorthEast United FC. The task becomes difficult for the host considering the fitness and intent of the Highlanders, who are really emerging as a contender for the knock-out phase, having 16 points from 14 matches.
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“My strategy is to make sure we do the best that we can. As I said, we are playing against a dinosaur! We need to be smart in our game and try to do the best we can,” Benali spoke about his opponent and the approach of his team against it.
For the Mohun Bagan head coach, Habas, his team’s next match will be another step towards regaining the balance and form that would make it a contender for the League Shield. “Our objective is to get the three points. Our approach is to be positive and find the right balance in the squad,” Habas said.
Habas was particularly upset about the scheduling of his team’s matches in the ISL fixtures. The match against North East United FC will be Mohun Bagan SG’s third appearance in seven days (the previous two being Feb 10 (Hyderabad FC), Feb 14 (FC Goa), which Habas feels is putting “inhuman” stress on his players and exposing them to injuries.
“We are traveling back from Goa and getting no time to recover before we play another intense match. This is totally unacceptable. Some teams are getting seven days to prepare (NEUFC played its last match on February 10 against East Bengal) while we are getting just a day. This is a professional league and I don’t find any logic in the way they are preparing the fixtures,” said a visibly disturbed Habas.
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