After suffering a shameful defeat by six goals to nil in the AFC Champions League qualifying round, Mohun Bagan FC is going to face the Maldivian football club Maziya S&RC. The game will take place at the Guwahati Stadium in Assam, India.
Mohun Bagan faced the Chinese top club Shandong Luneng a few days ago and the match resulted in a humiliating 6-0 defeat for the Kolkata-based club. Failing to qualify for the AFC Champions League, Mohun Bagan has to face Maziya in the group stages of the AFC Cup.
There are 8 groups at this stage and Mohun Bagan is in ‘group G’ along with four other clubs, South China, Yangon United and Maziya. The schedule for the match was released today and the match is going to take place on 24th February at the Guwahati Stadium.
Cup History
Kuwait SC is the most successful club in the Cup’s history so far with three cup titles. Clubs from Kuwait have been very successful in this particular cup tournament as they have picked up four cup titles so far.
Until 2015, the finals have always been dominated by clubs based in West Asia. In 2015 the Malaysian club Johor Darul Ta’zim won the cup title and is the current champion.
Mohun Bagan’s chances
After that heavy defeat in the AFC Champions League this is the perfect opportunity for Mohun Bagan to turn around and get a decent victory over the Maldivian Club. A victory will not only shed a spotlight on Indian football but will also boost Mohun Bagan’s morale.
Their opponents Maziya may not be the biggest of names to come across in the world of football, but they have managed to win three local titles in recent years, including the Maldivian FA Charity Shield in 2015.
A decent performance in this cup competition will also help Mohun Bagan charge up to take back the lead in the domestic I-League where they now occupy the second position, 2 points behind the league leaders Bengaluru FC.
