Kolkata, August 4, 2019: Mohun Bagan started the season with a solid 2-0 victory over Mohammedan SC in Durand Cup. The Mariners will now shift their attention to a different tournament and will be aiming to defend the Calcutta League that they won last season. A good news for thousands of Mohun Bagan fans is that the opening CFL match will be held in Mohun Bagan Ground. The Green & Maroon brigade will be opening their CFL campaign against last season’s surprise package Peerless FC.

In first match of the 2019/20 season Kibu Vicuna’s team passed with flying colours. Salva Chamorro marked his Mohun Bagan debut with two perfectly executed headers while Joseba Beitia expertly controlled tempo of the match in midfield. Fran Morante was solid in defence and veteran Shilton Pal made a few sharp saves to ensure a clean sheet. Youngster Sk Sahil looked lively and impressed the sizable Mohun Bagan crowd that had gathered in Salt Lake stadium for the opening match. Mohun Bagan players showed laudable mutual understanding and interplay. In post match conference Vicuna rightly mentioned that fitness was one area where the team would need to improve as the team did show signs of fatigue in second half.

On Sunday, Kibu Vicuna spent time with the team and performed a video analysis of Peerless’ playing style. The players were involved in light drills and situation practice. Some squad rotation is likely given CFL and Durand Cup are held at the same time.

Peerless surprised many football experts when they finished as CFL runners up last season. One of their star players was Liberian Ansumana Kromah, who finished as league top scorer with 11 goals. Kromah is back in the same club this season and joined by Anthony Wolfe, another standout performer for Peerless last season with Varney Kallon in defence. Players like Pankaj Moula, Laxmikanta Mandi, Jiten Murmu also add valuable maidan experience to the Peerless squad. Peerless are coached by former Mohun Bagan player and coach Jahar Das. They haven’t started the CFL campaign on a positive note, drawing 2-2 with Southern Samity and then slumping to a 4-3 loss against Aryan SC in last match.

Last season this fixture ended in a 1-1 draw. Mohun Bagan took the lead on 73rd minute through Henry Kiseka. However, Kromah took advantage of a defensive lapse and scored a 91st minute equalizer to deny Mariners three points.