BAGAN EYE REVIVAL UNDER NEW COACH CHAKRABORTY

KOLKATA :Mohun Bagan will seek a revival of fortunes under new coach Shankarlal Chakraborty when they face reigning champions Aizawl in an I-League fixture on Sunday.

Having kicked off their campaign in style that included a 1-0 win over bitter foes East Bengal in the Kolkata derby, Mohun Bagan’s title aspirations have dwindled having slipped to fifth after seven matches.

The Mariners succumbed to a 1-2 defeat to a 10-man Chennai City, their first defeat of the season that came at their home ground, and moments later their 2014-15 I-League winning coach Sanjoy Sen stepped down.

Sen’s understudy, Chakraborty, was elevated to the chief coach’s position and his first priority would be to help the players regain self-confidence.

“Keeping in mind Mohun Bagan’s support base, when the team suffers back-to-back setbacks, more than technical you need to bring back the self-confidence of the players. And that’s my priority at this point of time,” Chakraborty said.

The key to success will be the recovery of linchpin, Sony Norde, who missed Bagan’s last two matches. The defence will be bolstered by a fit-again Arijit Bagui.

Both the teams are on 10 points but Mohun Bagan are ahead of Aizawl on goal difference. The northeast outfit is on a two-match winning run including the last one at Gokulam Kerala and they are expected to pose a big challenge to the hosts.