Karim Bencherifa likely to join Mohun Bagan

According to reports, Mohun Bagan have recruited another new coach in the middle of the season once again. Most likely, this time they have brought one of their former coach Karim Bencherifa from Salgaocar, Goa. This way, they will be keeping their tradition alive. Since last three years, Mohun Bagan have changed five coaches, and it has now become a tradition. For holding the hot seat of the Green & Maroon’s coach & occupying a chair in musical chair games has almost become synonymous since last few years. If we go through the track record, we will get Karim Bencherifa, Stanley Rozario, Steve Derby, Subrata Bhattacharjee & Santosh Kashyap.

This time, they could have recruited veteran Subrata Bhattacharjee easily for giving some oxygen to this dying Mohun Bagan side. Bhattacharjee is an ex-player of the club, very much loyal Mohun Bagan. All the supporters expected him to take the baton of the Mariners in his hand in this crisis period, but only the ego of current Mohun Bagan officials denied him from taking the responsibility.

The current Mohun Bagan officials believe in surprises instead of team’s good performance. Last time when they lost to Prayag United in a CFL game, they introduced Tolgay Ozbey from arch rival camp East Bengal to cover the harsh reality of loosing the CFL crown. This time they were trying the same thing with some foreign names as a coach, but they remained futile because most of the foreigners denied them.

Instead of Bhattacharjee, it looks like they have brought back Karin Bencharifa from Salgaocar. It is true the past experience of Karim in Mohun Bagan was not so good, the same officials have sacked him without having any sufficient reason. Even that time he made the Mariners victorious in Federation cup & runners-up in the I-League.

In his two years’ tenure, he made Salgaocar victorious in the prestigious I-League & the Federation cup. He actually likes to work with juniors, understands the man-management well.

The Salgaocar officials Shivanand Salgaocar & Raju Gomes obstructed a lot regarding the release of Karim but this time Karim himself was eager to take the responsibility of the Green & Maroon brigade. He himself forced the officials to release him from his current club.

The true thing is the condition of the Mariners is not good enough right now. They have lost both of their starting I-League games, were knocked out in the very early stages of the Federation cup. But the question which arises is that is it the right time for Karim to take the responsibility of a heave weight & supporter based club like Mohun Bagan? Only the time will give us the answer or else he might have to follow the footsteps of the others, like the notorious tradition of the Mariners.