Home ›› 11 Jan 2022 ›› Sport
Dhaka Abahani Ltd won their 12th Federation Cup title on Sunday, beating Rahamatganj MFS 2-1, and completed the domestic double as they had won the Independence Cup in December 2021.
And their head coach, Mario Lemos, is now aiming at winning the of the Bangladesh Premier League, which they have not won in the last two seasons.
In the last two seasons, Bashundhara Kings claimed the title, with Abahani finishing second in 2019 and third in 2021.
Lemos now is looking forward to changing that. Talking to The Business Post, he said, “We know Kings are going to be a contender, but our aim is to win the league. In the last two seasons, we failed to win it. This time, we will go for it.”
Abahani had won the Independence Cup beating Kings in the final 3-0 but the defending Champions were not in the Federation Cup after they opted out, accusing the Bangladesh Football Federation of fixture manipulation.
Lemos said that Kings would have been a contender, but it was a difficult tournament nonetheless.
“Kings are a very good team, and they will be a contender in every tournament they play. But in this tournament, we faced very good teams, and no game was easy,” Lemos told TBP.
As Kings left the Federation Cup on the eve of the tournament, there were controversies and two other teams- Uttar Baridhara and Muktijoddha KC also left.
Lemos said that during these controversies, Abahani focused on themselves, and that is what brought them success.
“In the last season, we failed to win trophies. Thus, we were very focused on winning the trophy that we didn’t really care what was happening outside of the game. Our focus was game by game, on how to play, how to improve, and our oppositions. What happened outside the field, we didn’t think about it. We just focused on our football. And that is why we won these two tournaments,” he said.
The Portuguese coach said it was a great feeling to win the Federation Cup and even a better one to complete the double.
“It’s a great feeling. We wanted to win this final. We were hurt with injuries, we had four players out. But the players were able to suffer on the pitch and get the win.
“It’s a big achievement to win the double. It’s not easy to win one trophy. And to win back-to-back trophies, it’s even harder. But it’s a great achievement for the club, the players, the coaching staff. We are very happy,” he told TBP on Monday.
