We don’t have any other solution than to play for win, says Mohun Bagan coach Antonio Habas

Antonio Habas boldly outlined that Armando Sadiku’s absence won’t be a factor for Mohun Bagan.

Mohun Bagan hope to book their place in the 2023-24 Indian Super League (ISL) final when they host Odisha FC at the Salt Lake Stadium, Kolkata on Sunday (April 28). The Mariners are currently trailing on a 2-1 deficit from the first leg, meaning they need a dominant performance to turn things around and move into the final.

Antonio Habas’ thoughts on second leg

Antonio Habas has dismissed claims of his team being overconfident in their ability to make the comeback, as he remarked: “There is no overconfidence in my team. It’s my job to ensure that my players don’t have any sib of overconfidence. We are losing the match by a goal and we need to win to get into the final. It’s impossible to have any sign of overconfidence. Our target is to play 100% with an idea to win. We don’t have any other solution than to play for a win. This is like a final for us, not just a semi-final.”

Lessons learnt from first leg loss and remarks on other semi-final

When asked what his side learnt from the loss in the first leg, the Spaniard remarked: “When you lose one match, you have to analyze the result and get the solutions to not repeat errors. I think maybe the team were not 100% in that match. That is determinate circumstances, but most important thing for me was to win the ISL league stages. After you do that, it’s human for some players to relax and when you do that, the opponent knows. We have an idea to compete at our 100% tomorrow.”

Habas refused to accept that Mohun Bagan can take inspiration from Mumbai City’s dramatic late win over FC Goa in their semi-final, where they scored three goals in added-time. He explained: “This is impossible to replicate. To score three goals after the 90 minutes is impossible, it’s magic! The circumstances were like this, but you can’t have a match plan like that.

“It’s not that we can play to keep things 0-0 and then score three goals in the last 10 minutes, that’s not possible in football. Because the opponent players are there. The problem is when you are winning 2-0, the score is like again the first goal. In 2-1, the players drop confidence and then it becomes 2-2 and things can finish like that,” he also added.

Kolkata conditions and Armando Sadiku absence

When questioned on if the scorching heat and humidity in Kolkata could play a part in the match, especially if it gets to extra-time, Antonio Habas mentioned: “I don’t know, maybe. It’s true that the humidity in Odisha was less than it is in Kolakta now. I’m not thinking of extra-time because we are thinking of ending the match in the first 90 minutes. After that, it’s another thing. We have players on the bench with the possibility to play 30 minutes extra if needed.”

The Spaniard doesn’t feel the absence of Armando Sadiku will be a huge blow to his side. He stated: “The competition is like this. If Sadiku isn’t there, there are more five players to play. The opponents have that problem too, it’s like 50% more problem for Lobera than for me. We need to think of utilizing our total squad, not one player. We have absolute respect for the opponents but we want to win the match.”

Could Mohun Bagan switch formation against Odisha?

Upon being asked if he is pondering on switching the formation to a four-man backline to keep Roy Krishna & co. quiet, Habas answered: “For one match, maybe the idea is not to change the formation or the situation of the team. In the other match in Odisha, the score was 0-0 – a draw (in the league stages). I think last time around, we had more possibility to win the match in Odisha but because of two accidental moves we lost the match. I don’t have any time to change the formation in 2-3 days, it’s impossible. You get one day to recover, second day for rest and the third day for match plan. But we have other options in our head; this is a good alternative to change maybe during the match.”

Habas calls for more attacking football and remarks on reason for last loss

Antonio Habas insisted that he would want his team to play even more thrilling attacking football than usual, claiming: “I think Mohun Bagan need to be a more offensive team, in my opinion. Sometimes we receive chances and score goals again. Sometimes I prefer to win 4-3 than 1-0. The idea is not to continue with the semi-final, win the semi-final and have an option in the final. But it all depends tomorrow because Odisha will also play to win, they have a good coach and good players – their players have experience and know how to win. No hurry about the future, tomorrow the decisions are made on the pitch.”

When asked why Mohun Bagan couldn’t get a result against Odisha in the first leg despite taking an early lead, the mentor detailed: “I managed two matches in Odisha. One match was a draw and another was a loss. Now this same match for me is in my home. In football, it’s impossible to control everything. It’s impossible to control from the first minute to the 90th minute, because the opponents play to win as well; they too have good players and options.

“In the last match, they had yellow cards and then Sadiku saw the red card. Only one small detail changed the final score. That is why I have absolute confidence in my players, and I know that we have all the possibility to win the match. Now we can only compete. The support of the fans is very important for us. Tomorrow we have 25% possibility to score goals and get to the final,” he also added.

Praise for Odisha’s players and Sergio Lobera

Habas also had glowing words for Sergio Lobera and the threat possessed by the likes of Roy Krishna and Diego Mauricio. He explained: “Lobera is a good coach. He has very good consistency. I am the most experienced coach and have started from 2014, but Lobera is second behind me in the table for most number of matches managed. Odisha have experienced players with the possibility to win the league. Logically, it won’t be easy. We need to prepare for the team because it won’t be easy.”

“It depends on the circumstances of the match. Krishna is a very clever player and we need to control him absolutely. We need defensive cover, which is very important. We need to mark him using one player and another player needs to cover. This is the mistake which troubled us the last day,” he added.

Habas asks for calmness from players

Finally, Antonio Habas advised his players to remain calm against Odisha FC’s physicality and for the referee to manage the game well. He said: “This is football. We need to keep calm and be intelligent. The players have to be intelligent. Another very important thing is the referee. They need to control and determine situations during the matches. It won’t be good if they help the other team, the referee has to act according to the laws.

“The laws are the most important thing in football and the referees must respect that. One thing, it’s the rules that the referee has to stop if incorrect things happen,” he finished with.

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