Kolkata: As anticipated Mohun Bagan is likely to release Ivory Coast striker Kamo Stephane Bayi. It was reported by xtratime.in on Monday that the Ivory Coast footballer may not be retained by the club management for the I League following his disappointing show in Sunday’s derby at Siliguri.
Kamo missed a sitter in the second half when he had only East Bengal custodian Louis Barreto to beat but his shot was wide. The miss proved very costly as the Mariners lost a golden opportunity to win the Calcutta Football League.
According to Bagan finance secretary Debashish Dutta, “We want an explanation from him (Kamo) for his poor performance in the last three matches. The matter has been sent to the Technical committee of the club. We will take a final call on him only after hearing his explanation.”
He also added, “We are likely to release a few players from the Kolkata League squad. The final list will be sent to the I League committee by October 01.”
The club officials sat down at the club tent today to decide on the composition of the squad for the I League. According to reliable sources, the club is likely to release a total of 11 footballers from their Kolkata League squad. Footballers to have failed to find favours with the club management include Mithun Samanta , Suman Hazra, Sarthak Golui, Surajit Sil, Wasim Akram Mallick, Vikas Saini, Souvik Das, Rohit Mirza, Israel Gurung, Uttam Rai and Kamo Stephane Bayi.
It was in the offing as the Green and Maroon officials already confirmed the services of Cameroon International Dipanda Dicka. Dicka , who plied his trade with Mohammedan Sporting in the Kolkata League, will don the Green and Maroon jersey in the I League. Other foreigners confirmed by the Bagan officials for the I League are Ansumana Kroma, Sony Norde, Yuta Kinowaki, Obumeme Kingsley and Asian quota footballer Diogo Ferreira from Australia.
All the foreigners are likely to join the training on October 01. Sony Norde will join training after the club comes back from Sikkim Governors Gold Cup.
Meanwhile, the Mariners will train at the Barasat Stadium from October 03-07, considering the matches in the Sikkim Gold Cup will be played on artificial turf.
It is learnt that the club is in the process of finalising the move of four Mohammedan footballers in their favour. They include Sheikh Faiaz (midfielder), Rana Gharami (defender), Shankar Roy (goalkeeper) and Dipendu Duari (midfielder)
In another development the top officials of the club is mulling a move to disassociate themselves with the IFA following the step motherly attitude of the parent body towards them. The matter will be discussed in the Executive Committee of the club on October 20.