Indian club football action returns in August with the arrival of the AFC Cup 2021, with potentially two Indian clubs -- ATK Mohun Bagan and Bengaluru FC -- in action in the competition's Group Stage (South) from August 18-24, 2021.
Group D consists of ATK Mohun Bagan FC, Maziya Sports & Recreation from the Maldives, and Bangladeshi side Bashundhara Kings, along with the winner of the South Asia play-off match between Bengaluru FC, who are 2016 AFC Cup runners-up, and Maldives' Club Eagles.
The play-off will take place on 15 August in Male.
ATK Mohun Bagan are direct entrants to the group stage of the AFC Cup 2021 by virtue of being winners of the I-League 2019/20, after their agreement to form a joint venture, and will be confident of making a mark on the continental stage and move forward together.
ATK remember is likely to be without Sandesh Jhingan, who according to reports is set to play in Europe, in Croatia with top division club HNK Sibenik.
Bengaluru FC earned their AFC Cup 2021 Preliminary Round 2 entry by virtue of a third-place finish in the Indian Super League's league phase in 2019/20 and defeated Nepal's Tribhuvan Army FC 5-0 in April 2021 to enter the play-off round. On Monday (9 August), they announced a 29-man squad for the clash against Club Eagles. Bengaluru FC will be led by Indian team skipper Sunil Chhetri.
The teams in Group D will face off against each other in a single-leg round-robin format across three matchdays -- August 18, 21 and 24, with all matches being held in the Maldives. The eventual group winner will proceed to the next round, which is the single-leg Inter-Zone semi-final.
Group D fixtures:
18 August: Bashundhara Kings vs Maziya Sports & Recreation
18 August: ATK Mohun Bagan vs Bengaluru FC/Club Eagles
21 August: Maziya Sports & Recreation vs ATK Mohun Bagan
21 August: Bengaluru FC/Club Eagles vs Bashundhara Kings
24 August: Maziya Sports & Recreation vs Bengaluru FC/Club Eagles
24 August: ATK Mohun Bagan vs Bashundhara Kings
(With IANS Inputs)
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