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Hyderabad FC face one of their greatest challenges this season when they travel to Kolkata to take on defending ISL champions Mohun Bagan Super Giant on Saturday.
The Nawabs, ranked right at the bottom of the league table, are going through one of their worst times ever since their inception.
Financial issues have spiralled the club into an extremely challenging spot, with an exodus of most of their first-team players leaving them bereft of many options.
As a result, the Yellow and Black have resorted to promoting players from their Reserves and giving them the opportunity to showcase their wares in top-flight football.
On Saturday, however, Hyderabad will have to be on their toes to compete on an even scale with Mohun Bagan even though the latter will be without the services of a lot of their key players.
A Mohun Bagan club official - who wanted to remain anonymous - that Sportskeeda spoke to ahead of the game mentioned that the Mariners are not taking the Nawabs lightly at all.
"Yes, Hyderabad may not have had the best of times in the league so far, but they are a dangerous side. We don't need any reminding of what they did against us in the Super Cup in Bhubaneswar. To be fair, we were quite fortunate to have won that game against them. If not for the own goal and for the penalty we got, things may have ended differently. Hence, we are not taking them lightly at all," he said.
Sreetama Chakraborty, an IT professional and die-hard Mohun Bagan supporter, echoed the aforementioned official's words.
She said that complacency has often been the bane for the Mariners in the past, and they do not wish to fall prey to that this time.
Being winless in their last four games, Mohun Bagan will be keen on resurrecting their campaign with a win in this match.
"Oh yes, most definitely, it is going to be a good game. We know that they are not a team to be taken lightly at all. Although we are confident of Mohun Bagan winning this game, we know that Hyderabad FC will not be easy opponents to beat. It is going to be a good game. Even though they have a young side, they have shown immense heart and passion in their last few games. If it is their day, they can challenge us," she said.
Hyderabad assured of support from the Red and Golden half of Kolkata on Saturday
Hyderabad, who have not won a game yet in the season, will know that there is no better place to get their campaign off to a start than the historic Salt Lake Stadium
Opened in the year 1984, the Vivekananda Yuba Bharati Krirangan, as it is officially called, is a cauldron in the truest sense of the word, and Hyderabad's young lads will be geared up for the challenge.
Mohun Bagan know that the fifty-thousand or more supporters who are likely to flock in to cheer for them on Saturday will make life a living hell for the Nawabs, and will act as a virtual twelfth man for them.
The Mariners have won both the games that they played against the Yellow and Black earlier this season, as well as the last time the two teams met here in Salt Lake.
The game in question was the second leg of the semifinal of ISL 2022-23, which Mohun Bagan won on penalties after no goal could be scored across both legs.
Sweet as life may seem to be in the City of Joy, the other half of the capital of West Bengal may be thinking along completely different lines.
You are either a Ghoti (Mohun Bagan supporter) or Bangal (East Bengal supporter) in Kolkata, and the latter half of the city is fervently praying for a Hyderabad victory in this game.
Strange as it may seem, when Sportskeeda spoke to an East Bengal club official, he said that the wounds from the 2-2 draw in the derby last weekend are still fresh.
Due to the delicate nature of the matter, the official wanted to remain anonymous (there seems to be a pattern here!) but mentioned that the Red and Golden half of Kolkata will be on Hyderabad's side on Saturday.
Surprising though it may have seemed to this correspondent, it went well along the lines that in Kolkata, the hatred for one's closest rivals far overruns the love for one's club.
"Well, all I can say is that Hyderabad have to do what we could not last weekend! We are still hurting over a result that could very well have gone the other way. Although it is not going to be easy for the young Hyderabad side to beat such an experienced Mohun Bagan team, you can rest well assured that one half of Calcutta will be cheering for the Yellow and Black!" he said.
The last line may be all that the Nawabs need, offering them a fresh ray of hope in the evening mist that slowly descended upon the Hooghly at Princep Ghat, barely a kilometre from the East Bengal club headquarters.
