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Mohun Bagan likely to rest key players in AFC Cup tie vs Bengaluru FC
With nothing at stake for Mohun Bagan in the AFC Cup, they are likely to rest key players against Bengaluru FC, who they again clash against on Sunday in the Federation Cup final
This is a precursor to Sunday’s Federation Cup final but Mohun Bagan and Bengaluru FC are approaching their penultimate AFC Cup group league tie here on as anything but a dress rehearsal.
This being the fifth encounter of the season between the teams, Mohun Bagan coach Sanjoy Sen even said it gets a little “boring” playing the same team so many times. Both teams have won once each in different competitions.
With nothing at stake for Mohun Bagan in the AFC Cup, they are likely to rest key players with an eye on Sunday. And because group leaders Bengaluru FC’s fate hinges on their last group E game, at home to Maldives’ Maziya on May 31 --- both having nine points from four games --- there is little at stake for them either. Rarely, does a match in an Asian competition mean so little for both contestants.
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Bengaluru FC will miss John Johnson and Harmanjot Khabra because they are suspended. And coach Albert Roca said they have brought only around 15-16 players here, leaving the rest to recover in Cuttack which will host the Federation Cup final. The winners of the Federation Cup will get a shot at the AFC Cup in 2018.
Among those who are not here are midfielder Cameron Watson who is ill, defender Juanan Gonzalez, recently signed striker Cornell Glen and goalie Amrinder Singh. And striker Sunil Chhetri is in Bengaluru tending to his hamstring injury.
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“We have a Plan A and Plan B. We know winning against Maziya at home will give us a pass. In between, we have three games to finalise this season,” said Bengaluru FC coach Albert Roca here on Tuesday.
Sen though spoke of treating this match as an important step en route to the Federation Cup final because he thinks a winning momentum is a big thing. “Our team will be a blend of youth and experience with senior players in some key positions,” said Sen, adding that central defender Anas Edathodika will miss this match because of a back problem.
He said all four imports --- Sony Norde, Darryl Duffy, Katsumi Yusa and Eduardo Ferreira --- will be either on the bench or in the starting 11. “Mohun Bagan have the best foreigners in India and I think in terms of opponents for the Federation Cup final, they are the worst (most difficult) we could have faced,” said Roca.
Mohun Bagan lost the first leg of this AFC Cup tie 1-2 in Bengaluru in March.
