Post derby delight, Mohun Bagan coach Karim Bencherifa says more good days are to come for the Kolkata club

Karim Bencherifa’s already impressive CV got a significant boost after Mohun Bagan’s fiver against their arch-rivals East Bengal. His team won 10 I-League matches on the trot last season, a feat that was appreciated even by Fifa. But five goals against East Bengal have made him a darling of the Bagan fans. Bencherifa was in high spirits after the result but his mood changed when he heard that an East Bengal supporter suffered stroke during the match. “I was saddened to hear the news,” he said. In an interview to The Indian Express, Bencherifa spoke about his team’s chances in the I-League, upcoming talents and more. Excerpts:

Question: How do you plan to build on the win against East Bengal?
* Bencherifa: Winning the derby in Kolkata will always increase the confidence level, especially when you do it in style. Our progress started from winning against Viva Kerala, followed by victory in the Kolkata league. Add to that the third win against East Bengal (in the last one year). I hope this will inspire us and will mark the beginning of a long series of victories.

Coming into the derby, you and your team were under a lot of pressure. How difficult was the task to get the focus right?
* Well, most of the pressure was baseless as nobody knows the team and the players better than I do. I was confident about our assets and strengths. Football is a team game and I was confident that Team Mohun Bagan would be up to it.

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