Khalid Jamil says only the better team on the day will take the prize
IT IS SAID, IN A WAR EVERYTHING IS FAIR. Football is just a competition and not a war but the preparation for the final round is nowhere different than a battle.
The coach in the spotlight of I-League is that of Aizawl FC who has had quite a journey just like the club itself. Being sacked by Mumbai FC and Aizawl FC being relegated last season have been making heads turn with their performance this season. In an interview with the AIFF, Jamil spoke without beating round the bushes, like he always does.
Asked about his feeling of the entire season he said,
“Kuch jitne ke liye kuch khona padta hai, aur maine toh bahut kuch khoya hai" (To accomplish something you have to lose something else and I have lost a lot till now)
Aizawl FC have to get at least a draw against Shillong Lajong and coach of Lajong already made his intentions clear saying they wont make it easy for Aizawl to lift the title.
On that note, Khalid replied smiling,
“Yeah, that’s Football. Why will they allow us to run away with the title? We have to fight for every inch and we will,”
Jamil made a strong statement by saying,
"Nobody spared a word for us at the starting. We have seen the league through thick and thin and finally, we're down to here,”
“Mera players hamesha Dil se khelta hai (My players always play from their heart). They never shy away from doing something which they love. Aizawl players love playing football, they don't alienate themselves from doing that,”
Khalid Jamil believes that only the better team on the final day will take the trophy,
“We beat Mohun Bagan; we also beat East Bengal. But that doesn't mean we are better than them. It just means that on that day we might have played better Football than them. We churned out the result which was important for us,”
Being so close to the title, Jamil speaks about his thoughts before the moment of truth,
"I never ever dreamt of this day. Boys are enjoying it right now. I don't want to spoil their mood now but we still need one point. We can't afford to leave it loose until we grab it,”
Jamil knows there is no room for any error and added,
‘Can we let it slip?’ he queried himself, only to answer himself: "There can't be any margin of error. We need to get the job done. We can't afford to let it slip.”
Aizawl FC will be without the services of two key players Ashutosh Mehta and Alfred Jaryan due to suspension. If this could make a difference in tge strength of the team, Jamil answered,
“It will be very tough without Alfred & Ashutosh. But we can't just sit and think over their suspension. We have to find out how we'd overcome this. I trust my entire team and we will try to get Lajong's skin,”
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