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After two successive losses and in the middle of a dismal I-League season, Sankarlal Chakroborty resigned from his position as Mohun Bagan head coach on Sunday, 6th January. The green and maroon were dealt with a major blow in their campaign after a disappointing 1-2 loss against Real Kashmir at the Salt Lake Stadium.
“I don’t want to remain in my position of the head coach of this club. I have conveyed my decision to the club management and the players. I think Mohun Bagan need a fresh face to revive their campaign. I am taking all the responsibility for the poor performance. I wish the club all the success in future,” Sankarlal said at the post-match press conference.
“It’s not easy to find a new coach before our next match on January 9 (against Minerva Punjab). So I am ready to continue till the club find a new head coach,” Sankarlal added.
Mohun Bagan confirmed the resignation to Sportskeeda stating that they understand and respect the decision, " The club management accepts his decision and would like to thank him for all the success and hard work he has done, being in charge of the senior team for the past years. We wish him all success for his future endeavours. The announcement in regard to the appointment of the new Head Coach will be made shortly ."
After their loss against Real Kashmir, Mohun Bagan remained at the sixth position with just 15 points from 11 matches, nine points adrift of the league leaders Chennai City. At this moment, their quest for the title looks bleak.
Asked about the reason for his resignation, Sankarlal said, “I feel my time is up. I am not the right person to continue in this situation. At this moment, the club needs someone more experienced than me who can turn things around.”
Sankarlal said he is leaving at his own wish, not under any pressure from the club and supporters. “I am as cool and calm as I was in my first day. I have good ties with the club and all the players. I think the players have all the potential to make a comeback.”
Mohun Bagan’s defensive frailties were exposed again in the match against Kashmir and two goals from ‘defender’ Mason Robertson put the last knell on their coffin. The green and maroon coach conceded that it was defence that let the team down in this campaign.
“We had players like Luciano Sabrosa, Eduardo Ferreira in our previous seasons. We signed (Eze) Kingsley last season and this year we brought Kimkima and Sukhdev Singh, who were the two best defenders last season. Somehow, things didn’t work as planned,” said Sankarlal.
Some sources have also claimed that the club may hire a new coach and put Sankarlal as his assistant.
