ATK finished ninth on the table and shipped in 30 goals during the league phase. Indian recruits Anwar Ali, Ashutosh Mehta, Prabir Das and Keegan Pereira hardly impressed while the two foreign centre-backs, Tom Thorpe and Jordi Figueras, were ineffective.
The two-time champions seemed to have recognised their Achilles' heel and have already sealed the transfer of Arnab Mondal last month. The 28-year-old returns to the team after opting to turn out for East Bengal in the I-League last season.
On Monday, ATK held advanced talks with I-League champions Minerva Punjab for two defenders, viz. Kamalpreet Singh and Sukhdev Singh. ATK had shown interest in Kamalpreet last month itself and are set to land the right-back for a substantial fee.
I-LeagueEast Bengal claimed to have landed Sukhdev as well, announcing his arrival via a press release last week. However, the centre-back is under contract with the Chandigarh-based club till 2020 and Mohun Bagan, too have their eyes pried on the 26-year-old.
ATK have now entered a fierce bidding war for Sukhdev as he is set for a move to any one of the three Kolkata clubs. East Bengal though, remain firm on their stand of having signed Sukhdev after having dealt with his agent rather than the club.
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