Top five talking points from Calcutta Football League gameweek 3

The things are looking tight at the top as the league have moved into its business end.

The Calcutta Football League title race just got a lot closer with some interesting results this week, as the league moves into the business end of the season. While it looks like the 'usual suspects' in Mohun Bagan and East Bengal will probably win the trophy, the resurgence of Peerless has also made them surprising contenders. The time for fun and games is over in the CFL and every point lost is like a game lost at this stage, with some thrilling matches last week proving how hungry the sides are for victories.

Let's take a look at the five talking points from the third gameweek of the Calcutta Football League.

5. Tollygunge Agragami’s poor recruitment of domestic players costing them badly

Tollygunge Agragami’s shocking performances in the Calcutta Football League has surprised many and having being unable to score a single goal or gain a single point so far, they look a side in complete disarray. Agragami are currently at the bottom of the CFL table and have themselves to blame for some poor recruitment prior to the tournament. Only goalkeeper Subham Roy has been this saving grace so far this season and signing bygone players like Rakesh Masih, Gobind Singh and Ashim Biswas has come back to haunt them. Agragami have been shockingly poor defensively and nonexistent going forward and will need a miracle to hope for a top table finish this season.

4. Can Ansumana Kromah’s goal-scoring form find him a team in the I-League?

Ansumana Kromah seems to be out to prove his ability in this year’s Calcutta Football League and after being discarded by East Bengal, he seems to be a man on a mission this year.  Kromah has scored six goals in four games and even scored a hattrick in the game against George Telegraph recently. He’s leading from the front and helping Peerless mount a serious title challenge and is aiming to perform to his best to make sure he can play professionally beyond the CFL. Kromah could get selected by a prominent I-League side if he continues his impressive form, as he is a serious contender to win the Golden Boot this season.

3. Lack of clinical strikers hurting Mohammedan Sporting

Mohammedan Sporting have had an underwhelming start to their CFL campaign and having only scored two goals from four games, something is seriously wrong in their attacking front. Striker Princewell Emeke, who signed before the season, hasn’t been able to impress at all and been extremely disappointing in front of goal. Emeke has missed some glorious chances to score and was especially shocking in their goalless draw with George Telegraph result. This complete lack of goal-scoring ability among their strikers is hurting the Black Panthers, who will hope that Technical Director Raghu Nandy can inspire their strikers and get them scoring before they fall too far behind in the title race.

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2. Domestic players the way to go for Mohun Bagan

Mohun Bagan finally hit top gear against Tollygunge Agragami on Sunday when they recorded a resounding 3-0 victory over the struggling Agragami, mostly due to the brilliance of their domestic players. Sankarlal Chakraborty finally ditched the Henry Kisekka-Dipanda Dicka combo by benching the new signing and playing another domestic signing Britto PM in his place. But it was a match where Bagan’s domestic core shone through, with Pintu Mahata having an excellent game in a free role. Azharuddin Mallick also seemingly thrived playing aside Dicka and Britto, Arijit Bagui were also influential to the victory. It seemed that Bagan benefit highly playing more domestic players in the CFL and proved why the Dicka-Kisekka combo should be reserved for the I-League.

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1. East Bengal have finally found the right balance in their team

East Bengal are flying high in the Calcutta Football League and seemed to have picked up their game since their dismal draw to Calcutta Customs a few week ago. It seems like Subhash Bhowmick has finally found the right combination for the CFL and along with their domestic players looking in prime form, the combination of Mahmoud Al-Amnah and Kassim Aidara is working wonders as well. Not only are Bengal relentless on the attack, but they’ve been extremely sound defensively with new signings Kinshuk Debnath, Kamalpreet Singh and Rakshit Dagar shining. Bengal have scored 8 and conceded none so far and their dominant form proves how they have again turned the East Bengal ground into a fortress and look set to retain their CFL crown for the ninth year running.