Ashique Kuruniyan expresses Mohun Bagan squad's enjoyment to play in Kalinga Super Cup 2025 before FC Goa clash

Mohun Bagan knocked out Kerala Blasters to reach the Kalinga Super Cup 2025 semi-final.

Mohun Bagan take on FC Goa in the semi-finals of the 2025 Kalinga Super Cup on Wednesday, 30 April 2025 at the Kalinga Stadium, Bhubaneswar. The Mariners impressed in their recent win over Kerala Blasters in the quarterfinals, but now face a relatively more challenging clash against their 2024-25 Indian Super League (ISL) challengers.

Ashique Kuruniyan is heading into this game with quite a bit of momentum on his side. The speedy winger was impressive in the win over Kerala Blasters, producing a nice assist and looking really sharp all through the game.

On having an almost all-Indian squad for Kalinga Super Cup

Ahead of the game, Kuruniyan expressed a calm and happy mood amongst the Mohun Bagan players and stated: “We know each other for a long time, and the reserve players have also trained with us in the past. We have a good mood in the dressing room as we know each other for a long time. It’s even more when it comes to playing with an Indian-dominant squad.

“When the (Super Cup) squad was announced, we were delighted that majority of the Indian players will play, and it’s good that we can compete against a team that plays 4-5 foreigners. We played well in the last match, and we are all confident for the next game.”

On the mood in the Mariners camp

Ashique also expressed a kind of enjoyment within the Mariners’ camp for the Super Cup, as he and his teammates can play with almost no pressure – as compared to the intensity of pressure in the ISL.

He explained: “It feels good to get more regular playing time. I was really happy to come here as I knew I would get more games to play. I’m getting another game after winning the first match, and now we need to look to play another game by winning the semi-final.

“As coach (Bastob Roy) said, we will enjoy ourselves in the ground and it feels great to play with enjoyment in the ground. It always feels great to play in Kolkata under 60,000 crowd in the important matches. There is some pressure in the ISL as we are playing for India’s biggest club. But here everyone is playing without pressure and that makes it more fun for us,” he finished off with.

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