Bengal wary of Karnataka, Mizoram no pushovers against Kerala
Defending champions Bengal will be up against ‘surprise package’ Karnataka, while Kerala and Mizoram will clash in a battle of two dominant sides in the semifinals of the national football championship for the 72nd Santosh Trophy here on Friday.
Karnataka, who won the Santosh Trophy last time in 1968-69, emerged as surprise group B toppers after beating teams such as Goa, Odisha and Mizoram.
While Karnataka will be trying to continue their fairytale, coach P Muralidharan said they are “hungry” to win against Bengal at the Howrah Maidan Stadium.
“We have young players hungry to play and keen to win. Now that we have reached the semi-finals, anything can happen,” Muralidharan said. 32-time champions.
Bengal have won without much fuss against Manipur, Maharashtra and Chandigarh, before losing their final group game against Kerala in a game their top players were rested.
“Several players of Karnataka appear in the second division League. They are physically dominant, fast, strong and will be a good opponent. It is for us to achieve a positive result,” Bengal coach Ranjan Chowdhury said, refusing to see much into their last round loss to Kerala.
An exciting contest will be on the cards when Kerala and Mizoram lock horns at the Mohun Bagan ground.