?Beto? will be key to Bagan?s attacks

Bangalore: In yet another battle for supremacy between Goan and Calcutta teams, Dempo will take on Mohun Bagan in Sunday?s final of the Federation Cup football championship at the Sree Kanteerava Stadium.

If Dempo, the team from Goa, win, it would be for the first time. They advanced to the final for the third time in the championship?s history after edging out another Calcutta outfit Tollygunge Agragami 4-3 in what turned out to be a high-intensity semi-final.

For Mohun Bagan, Sunday will be their 15th final appearance in Federation Cup. In the semi-final against Sporting Clube de Goa, the Calcutta giants were stretched, but mercurial Tomba Singh put them in the final with his long-range shot in extra-time.

Eleven-time champion Mohun Bagan ended the dream run of Sporting Clube de Goa with a one-goal win the other day, while Dempo, riding on a superb hattrick by Nigerian striker Ronty Soleya Martins, edged Tollygunge Agragami in the other semi-final.

Dempo will again be banking on the striking prowess of Cristiano Junior, who emerged the top-scorer in the last edition of the National Football League sporting the East Bengal colours, and Ronty Martins, who scored the tournament?s first hattrick.

If Junior and Martins get going, it will not be easy to contain them as Tollygunge discovered to their dismay the other day when they found themselves on the receiving side.

The green-and-maroon brigade will be banking on their famed midfield in the title round. The midfield, comprising of Tomba, Mehtab Hussain and the veteran Basudeb Mondal has had a splendid run in the tournament. Their fluent attack and off-the-ball movement has provided space for strikers to operate.

With Roberto Mendes Silva ?Beto?, Bagan?s Brazilian recruit finding the target, the Goan opponent will have their task cut out. Playing alongside him will be Sunil Chhetri, while Ashim Biswas will play a little deep.

Still, defence remains coach Subrata Bhattacharya?s main worry. In the absence of Eduardo Coelho, the coach has been experimenting with Nigerian James Ugwo as a defensive midfielder. Their main concern will be to keep Junior and Martins under check, and if they manage to do that, they may well be on way to their first title of the season.

However, coach Bhattacharya will hope that he does not have a hattrick of title losses on his hands.