The reigning Indian Super League (ISL) champion Mohun Bagan Super Giant will be entering the second round of the AFC Cup group-D league fixtures enjoying the form and confidence of winning its last five outings when it takes on the challenger from Maldives, Maziya Sports and Recreation Club, at its home in the Salt Lake Stadium here on Monday.
The Maziya challenge comes after Mohun Bagan had outlasted a fighting Bengaluru FC by a solitary goal at the same venue in an ISL match barely four days ago.
The host will be looking to switch over to the continental competition relying on the efficiency of its attack and the doggedness of its defence which is reflected in its performance in the last five matches where it scored 14 goals and conceded just three while keeping two clean sheets.
Mohun Bagan blanked Odisha FC 4-0 at the latter’s home in the first round of the AFC Cup group league and will be banking on the good coordination of its foreign and domestic players to get past the challenge of Maziya S&RC.
The Maldives Super Cup winner also presents strong credentials having beaten the Bangladesh giant Bashundhara Kings 3-1 in the first round while travelling to the former’s home in Dhaka.
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With the AFC Cup regulations allowing six foreigners on-field both the teams will be banking a lot on the form and merit of their international recruits.
With only the winner of the group progressing to the inter-zone semifinals, the contest is expected to be quite keen as both sides look to pick up points and strengthen their claim. Mohun Bagan will be hoping to see its attack combine effectively once again to deliver the intended result.
The host will be relying on the likes of the Australians Jason Cummings and Dimitrios Petratos, Albanian Armando Sadiku and Frenchman Hugo Boumous to successfully team up with the Indian internationals like Sahal Abdul Samad, Manvir Singh, Anirudh Thapa to breach the Maziya S&RC defence.
The presence of captain Subhasish Bose and the talented Anwar Ali alongside the Australia-Spain pair of Brendan Hamill and Hector Yuste will be the choice Mohun Bagan will have in defence.
“The most important thing is to think about our own performances and mental state. We have a lot of matches in a short span and all are crucial for us. It is necessary for us to focus on ourselves, be ready and comfortable on the field and create spaces to make the attacks effective,” said the Mohun Bagan head coach Juan Ferrando.
“They (Maziya S&RC) have a good set of players and we need to make our attacks count. We are playing at home, and we only have six matches in the group stages. The home matches in the group stages are like a final and it is important that we take more points here,” he added.
The Maziya S&RC head coach Milomir Seslija said his team would try to play fearlessly and try to improve the performance it put in the previous round.
“We are here to play football, we will try to get something from the match and continue our progress. We have nothing to lose, we are not scared. We have noted their (Mohun Bagan’s) strengths and everything is on us to play with courage and be better than the last game as everything in football is measured by results,” Seslija said.
Maziya’s Bosnian coach felt that injuries were preventing the team from performing to its true potential. “When you assess their physical and technical aspects, they have an advantage as they are playing games regularly. But this is football and we will try to work on our strengths and see what we can do in future,” Seslija said.
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