Will never forget the pain of losing the league, says Mohun Bagan head coach Sanjoy Sen

THE MOHUN BAGAN COACH Sanjoy Sen said that losing out to Bengaluru FC in the Federation Cup title race was something that still haunted him, and he saw the 4 match suspension handed to him by AIFF as one of the chief reasons why this end-season debacle happened.

Speaking to Bengali tabloid Ebela, Sanjoy Sen opened up about the disappointment he and the team suffered during the league season,

"These days you can only win a national level trophy in the I-League and Federation Cup. That's why it hurts more to lose one of those opportunities after coming so close... now the sole target is to get the supporters smiling again."

He confessed that his suspension had a major effect on the Green and Maroons' performance towards the end of the league,

"It feels like had I been there at the bench Mohun Bagan would have become champions. Losing to Aizawl FC and East Bengal, dropping points against Lajong at the last moment... had I been there we may not have done all that. It's a huge regret. I will never forget this pain."

But Sen added that he still believed that speaking out against AIFF was the right thing to do,

"Many had said that time that I spoke the truth they could not say openly... somebody has to lay it down in black and white. I said it for the greater good of the players, not for any personal motive. But I was criticised nonetheless; I'll have to be more careful from now on... without changing my mentality. I can compromise if it's good for the team, but I won't change myself."

The coach, who helped Mohun Bagan win their first league title in 13 years, said that his focus was on finishing the current season on a winning note rather than think about the next season,

"We're in the AFC Cup pre-quarters, we won our first Fed Cup game. I don't want to worry about the next season right now, there's a lot left to do in this one."