Santosh Trophy : Team Unity Was The Reason Behind Reaching Finals - Bengal Goalkeeper Abhra Mondal

Bengal reached the finals of the 64th Santosh Trophy on Friday beating Goa 4-3 on penalties with goalkeeper Abhra Mondal being the hero of the match pulling off two crucial saves. Goal.com caught up with the East Bengal star for his thoughts on the thrilling match.

We congratulated the young custodian on his team's victory and asked him how he felt about making the two saves of John Dias and Nicholas Rodrigues which helped Bengal reach the final. 

"Thanks a lot (smiles). It feels very good on having reached the finals. We had lost in the finals before and this year the tournament being on the home ground, it feels great to have defeated Goa which was a very strong side," said Mondal.

Mondal explained that the unity of the team was the key factor in the team reaching the finals.
 
"We have 20 players in the squad. We have a great unit out here. This team has a very good fighting spirit and a winning mentality. The unity in this squad has been instrumental in us reaching the final of this tournament," he said.

On being asked his thoughts about facing Punjab in the final again, Abhra, who was a part of the side that lost to Punjab in the 2006/07 Santosh Trophy final, admitted that the opponents have conceded very few goals in this tournament and have a good side. He also said that Punjab have a good balance of juniors and seniors and that the final will be closely contested and a good one.

It was at the start of 2010 that Mondal starred for East Bengal helping them win the Federations Cup. Is he the lucky charm for his team?

Mondal said that he just tries to contribute to the team's cause. He pointed out that the club and state teams are very different and claimed that since latter is a "full Bengali side" unlike the former, it was an even better feeling.

Our  provides the best breaking news online and our  football fan community is unmatched worldwide. Never miss a thing again!