Cuttack: The coaches of all the eight participating teams in the Fed Cup football tournament expressed their concerns about the tight schedule and the extreme heat wave conditions prevalent here during their interaction with media at the Barabati Stadium, Saturday. The teams playing the first match of the day at 4pm will face the maximum problems.
East Bengal will take on Churchill Brothers in the opening match of the prestigious event Sunday, while newly crowned I-League Champions Aizawl FC will lock horns with Chennai City FC later in the second game.
Head coach of I-League champions Aizawl FC, Khalid Jamil admitted that there is pressure on them to perform in the mega event. “Every tournament is different but we will try to win the event and try and maintain the momentum acquired by winning the I-League. Our group is a tough one and the matches definitely will be thrilling. Let’s see how we fare.”
East Bengal assistant coach Ranjan Choudhury said that he expected a positive start from his team. “All our players are hungry for success. We are pretty much focused for this tournament. Hopefully we will have a good start Sunday and keep things rolling from there,” he stated.
However Chennai City FC coach V Soundarajan maintained a pretty low profile and said that in comparison to his side the others are quite strong. “We are a very young group. We will try our best to give a tough fight to the others. I am just hoping that the youngsters gather some valuable experience by playing against the stars,” stated Soundarajan.
Sanjoy Sen, the head coach of defending champions Mohun Bagan, who begin their campaign against DSK Shivajians Monday, said, “We have been drawn in a very competitive group. However, we have prepared well and are ready for the challenges ahead. Definitely, the expectations will be high when you are defending champion, but you have to cope with it and deliver.”
Sen however, refused to divulge any information about star player Sony Norde who did not arrive with the side in the morning.
The Mohun Bagan coach was also unhappy with the fixture. “Every team have to play three games in five days and it is extremely difficult to recover in this heat. But as professionals we can’t complain and just have to move on,” he rued.
Bengaluru FC’s Albert Roca said, “Each team will prove to be a challenge in itself. We aim to stay positive and take one match at a time. The heat and humidity definitely is a worry.”
PNN
