Mohammedan SC players during a training session in Kolkata on Monday.
Another exciting match is lined up in the 130th Durand Cup as Mohammedan SC and Bengaluru United will lock horns in a battle of supremacy and will look to enter the quarter-finals as group leaders. Both the teams have remained undefeated in this edition, so far. The Group A match will take place on Tuesday, September 14, 2021, at the Kalyani stadium from 3:00 PM IST. It will be streamed LIVE on the addatimes app.
Both the teams have already qualified to the next stages, having won their previous two games and are currently on six points. In spite of being a dead rubber, both the teams are expected to not take it easy and a competitive game is expected. They will like to carry the winning momentum going into the next round.
The Black Panthers’ Head Coach, Andrey Chernyshov shared his thoughts before the game and said, “We are preparing for a tough game. This will be the game for the first place in the group. We want to win. I hope it will be an interesting game.”
He also added, “We are not thinking about the quarter finals yet. We are preparing for this particular group game. We have a difficult schedule, but we have a lot of good players, so we will be using new players in this game.”
Richard Hood, Head Coach, FC Bengaluru United spoke about star player Pedro Manzi and his equation with the team. He said, “There is a lot said about the portability of star talent and Pedro puts a lot of those theories to rest with how quickly he has gelled and adapted within the team environment. Transfers have an underlying debate of the right player versus the best player for the team - while Pedro ticks both those boxes for us. Main reason for that is the trust, care and respect that he shares mutually with his teammates and in how he utilizes his abilities to bring out the best in them while setting a very high standard for himself to get his name on the score sheet.”
He added, “Plans are best kept aside for the actual performance tomorrow and I don't think anyone has an iota of doubt that both teams are chasing 9 points to top the group table. It is always a case of less said the better going into such fixtures and we are looking forward to kick off tomorrow.”
Top two teams from each group will qualify for the quarter finals scheduled to kick-off from September 23, 2021.
