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Stage set for an intriguing finale

Abahani-Muktijoddha title decider today

Sports Reporter
The excitement of the just-concluded European Championships is set to
spill over to the domestic front today where all is poised for a mouthwatering finish to the Grameenphone Bangladesh Premier League when three-time champions Abahani and star-studded Muktijoddha Sangsad batde it out in the virtual championship-deciding match.
The last day of this year's professional league wUl produce a new champions if the Reds beat the Sky Blues, who however require only a draw to lift the title for a fourth time after a success-lorn year.
Abahani have won the first three of the four professional league titles so far, but never have been pushed to the brink to decide the title on the last day. Muktijoddha, on the other hand, have come close to winning the title last year when they pushed Sheikh Jamal Dhanmondi Club before finishing second a point behind the eventual winners. Today's match has all the ingredients to make it the most entertaining and intriguing clash in domestic football in recent history. The potential mouthwatering
clash takes place at the Bangabandhu National Stadium from 5:30pm and will be telecast live on BTV.
Abahani have a slight advantage as they start the title-decider on 44 points, one ahead of Muktijoddha and a draw would suffice them for the silverware. However, the Sky Blues are not taking the defensive route as they want to end the season as deserved winners with win over their rivals.
The Dhanmondi-based outfit started the second leg with a three-point lead over Muktijoddha and once went six points clear of their nearest rivals, had a few hiccups in the latter part of the league which saw them drop seven points while Muktijoddha kept up the charge and closed the gap to a single point.
"If the team had been consistent in the second leg, the title couldhave been decided much earlier but we don' t want to look at the past rather we want to win in the final match against Muktijoddha,” said Abahani manager Satyajit Das Rupu.
Abahani's Iranian coach Ali Akbar also echoed the sentiment of Rupu saying, "When you want to become champions, you should play like a champion. Our fans want to see us win in style. Our only target is to win
SEE PAGE 17 COL 8 FROM PAGE 16 the match.”
Abahani have a mental edge too over their opponents as they have never lost against Muktijoddha in nine encounters of the professional league. But Muktijoddha can take heart too from the fact that they did not lose to Abahani in their last three meetings.
"History does play a role on the psyche of the team but we are confident of turning things around with a win over Abahani as we can take inspiration from our performance against them in the first leg,” said Muktijoddha coach Shafiqul Islam Manik yesterday.
Though Muktijoddha are yet to win the professional league title, they had previously won two titles of the now-defunct Premier Division Football League and that too in their last matches. They beat Mohammedan in the last match of the 1998 league and two years later regained the title by holding off Abahani on the last match of that league.
"If the boys keep the consistency from the last four matches (against Brothers, Sheikh Russel, Team BJMC and Sheikh Jamal), then our dream of becoming champions will come true,” said Manik.