KOLKATA:
East Bengal
and
Mohun Bagan are engaged in a tug-of-war over
Mehtab Hossain
as the former captain of both teams has decided that he will hang up his boots after playing at home next season.
Mehtab joined Jamshedpur FC last season, after snapping his decade-old association with East Bengal. He, however, decided against renewing his contract with the ISL side and preferred to play for a city club to spend more time with his family.
Although the 33-year-old midfielder had said earlier that he would retire as an East Bengal player, he has kept mum over his future amid speculation that he would play for the red and golds free of cost. Mohun Bagan have added fuel to the fire by claiming that they are negotiating with Mehtab.
"We have spoken to him and are hopeful that he will play for us," Bagan's football secretary Swapan Banerjee said on Tuesday. Mehtab had played for Mohun Bagan from 2003 to 2006 and led them in 2005 before moving to East Bengal.
Asked about the chances of Mehtab playing for them, East Bengal official
Debabrata Sarkar
said, "The club's door is open for him."
Several attempts to contact Mehtab on Tuesday went in vain.
Bagan's new technical committee formed:
Mohun Bagan on Tuesday announced the formation of a new technical committee, comprising former captains Sisir Ghosh and Achintya Belel as well as
Mihir Bose
. The club has also indicated that contracts of some players might be reviewed.
Bagan are likely to begin their pre-season training with the local players from June 11.