Pritam Kotal and Debjit Majumder will be eyeing a maiden ISL trophy with Atletico de Kolkata on Sunday.[/caption]ATK Footballers are Upbeat Ahead of the Final in Kochi
Internet Desk: Atletico de Kolkata left back Pritam Kotal still cannot get over the incident that took place after the ISL 2016 semi-final against Mumbai City FC in Mumbai last night. Pritam is nursing a deep cut under his left eye following a brawl that broke out as soon as the referee blew the final whistle ending the second leg of the Indian Super League semifinal between ATK and Mumbai City FC.
Just as the final whistle blew, Thiago Dos Santos Cunha of Mumbai tackled Belencoso of ATK from behind. Belencoso retaliated with a head butt to Cunha. The Brazilian started kicking in the air and ATK left back Pritam accidentally got hit under his eyes.
The Mohun Bagan left back did not want to remember the incident. According to Pritam, “We are into the final and I do not want to think what happened last night. All I am praying now is to win the trophy and touch it.”
Pritam also added that they would prefer to meet Delhi Dynamos in the final as the match will be played in Kochi. “We would like to face Delhi in the final because if Kerala wins they will get the home advantage.”
Pritam’s teammate in Atletico and Mohun Bagan, Debjit Majumder too is upbeat ahead of the final. The goalkeeper from Hooghly is having an excellent season in ISL so far. Debjit made a stunning save to stop Sunil Chhetri from scoring in the first half. It proved to be a match-winning save as the match eventually ended in a 0-0 stalemate. The Atletico de Kolkata goalkeeper has been in tremendous form, playing 14 out of 16 matches so far.
"I have always tried to give my best and repay the faith that my coach have on me. He has always backed me and that has given me more confidence to play well. I am not worried about who our opponents will be for the final on Sunday. My target will be to keep a clean sheet for our team."
Another local boy Abinash Ruidas has been a revelation in the tournament. The lanky East Bengal left half, playing his maiden ISL season has impressed everyone with his swift moves down the left flank.
"We have to win the finals first; I will celebrate once we win. I am satisfied to have played 9 matches out of 16, and looking forward towards the final."
Prabir Das will have an opportunity to play his first ISL final on Sunday. The Atletico de Kolkata right back played for FC Goa and Delhi Dynamos in the first two seasons.
"I have played in all the three ISL season but this is the first time my team is in the finals. I am very excited about it. I am personally very grateful to the coach that in spite of not joining the team during pre-season training in Spain he gave me the scope to play 7-8 matches. If you have the confidence of the coach, it works as an added advantage for you when you play on the field," said Prabir to xtratime.in.
A goalless draw after regulation time on Tuesday in Mumbai meant Atletico de Kolkata entered the final, winning by a 3-2 aggregate. The ten-man Atletico de Kolkata (ATK) showed great determination to see off Mumbai City FC in a 0-0 draw in the semi-final second leg.
This will be the second time Atletico de Kolkata reached the final of the tournament, a first under coach Jose Molina who took over the reins from Antonio Habas this season. Habas led ATK to their first title in 2014.
0 comments:
Post a Comment