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[caption id="attachment_12283" align="alignnone" width="580"] Mohun Bagan's Haitian footballer Sony Norde at a city mall on Wednesday. Image Source: Xtra Time[/caption] Internet Desk: Mohun Bagan’s star international footballer Sony Norde blamed the lack of professional approach from the management towards failing to retain the I League. The Haitian footballer spoke his heart out in an exclusive interview to xtratime.in about his team’s failure to win the I League for a second time in a row. Here are the excerpts: What has been the main reason for Mohun Bagan not being able to retain the I League this year? Losing 10 points in 4 matches towards the end has been the main reason for losing the title. When I left India to play the 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifier, Mohun Bagan was comfortably placed at the top of the table with 25 points. We were 5 points clear of Bengaluru FC and had a gap of 7 points with East Bengal. But we lost our matches against Aizwal FC and East Bengal. We drew the next two matches against Shillong Lajong and DSK Shivajians. That dashed our hopes of retaining the I League. Coach Sanjoy Sen was suspended by the AIFF for his comments. How much did it attribute to losing the title? It was indeed a huge blow for us. His presence in the reserve bench surely would have made a difference, particularly in the derby and also in the match against Aizwal FC. We definitely could have avoided the draw against Lajong as the score was 2-1 with 20 seconds to go for the final whistle. But we conceded a goal in the dying minutes and failed to latch on to the win. It was a huge blow to our title hopes. Had our coach been present we would have avoided the loss. Getting a player substituted would have helped killing the time. Your injury did not help either towards the end as you missed key matches, particularly the derby? Yes, I got injured in the FIFA World Cup qualifier against Panama. I was eager to play the derby but the injury forced me out. Mohun Bagan missed a leader like me on the pitch. Mohun Bagan fans started doubting your commitment towards the team after you missed the derby. That prompted you to post a message on your facebook wall? Yes, that could have been avoided. I still love the Mohun Bagan fans. It was a perfect example of misunderstanding. When I returned from Haiti, the coach and management knew about my injury. Even the top officials of the club also were aware of it. The fans needed to be communicated about my injury. Bengaluru FC has now won its second I League titles in three years. What has been the difference between Bengaluru FC and Mohun Bagan? I would say lack of professionalism on the part of Mohun Bagan management that also constituted in the team not being able to retain the I League title. Bengaluru FC looked a vety professional outfit both on and off the field. They had a great coach and tactician. They also had quality players and were good at set piece movements. The management also took a very professional approach towards the football team. Mohun Bagan will have an opportunity to settle the scores with Bengaluru FC when they take them in Siliguri for the last match of I League? Yes, it will be an important match for us, not in the context of I League. But we can take in a lot of confidence going into the Federation Cup that follows. Will you be available against Bengaluru FC? Yes, the injury is much better now. I did train with the team in the last couple of days and do not feel any pain. I am confident about playing the last match against Bengaluru FC in Siliguri. Your coach did mention that his prime focus now will be to do well in Fed Cup and AFC Cup. I fully agree with the coach as all we need to do now is focus on winning the Federation Cup. Since we have not won any trophies this year, winning the Federation Cup will be an icing on the cake. It will also bring the smiles back on the faces of our fans. The boys need to sacrifice everything and keep the focus to win the Fed Cup. Who according to you have impressed the most amongst the Indian footballers in I League? For me the best Indian footballer in this I League is Eugeneson Lyngdoh. He came back from injury to put up a great performance for his team. Who according to you is the best foreign footballer in the I League? Katsumi played well and so did Glen. But if you ask me to pick any one, it has to be Katsumi Yuasa. Lastly, How is your country gearing up for the Copa America main round matches in America? It will be a huge thing for us. We play Peru on June 04, Brazil on June 08 and Equador on June 12. As you see we are pitted in a very strong group. It will be the first time that Haiti got an opportunity to play in a big stage. We are a small nation and would like to surprise with our performance. The national team will be having a training camp from May 20 in USA.