KOLKATA: Baichung Bhutia on Monday served a quit notice on Mohun Bagan after the club officials questioned his commitment to the team.
The India captain called on the club's finance secretary Debashish Dutta and sought a release with immediate effect. The striker still has a year left in his two-year contract with the club.
"I no longer have any desire to play for Mohun Bagan after all that has happened. It's good, both for me and the club, to part ways in a peaceful way," Baichung said on Monday, on the sidelines of the team's practice session for the AFC Cup match against Al Karamah.
Mohun Bagan had on last Thursday slapped a showcause notice on Baichung, accusing him of remaining not "fully committed" to their I-League cause and skipping practice sessions repeatedly to shoot for a dance programme (Jhalak Dikhla Ja).
"It is evident that your focus has shifted from football and it has now become your secondary interest," club secretary Anjan Mitra had stated in the letter.
Baichung, however, didn't reply to the letter and instead, decided to take it on the chin, seeing in it an attempt to make him the "scapegoat" for Bagan's I-League failure.
"After playing for 17-18 years, I don't need to prove my commitment. From Day I, the club was aware of my schedules for the dance programme. I had been absent from practice only on Saturdays but never missed a match (in the I-League).
"It is there for everybody to see how I fared in the (I-League) matches against Chirag United, Dempo and Vasco at home. It's just that we had a bad game against Mahindra (in the final round).
However, when we learnt at half-time that Churchill were leading (against Mohammedan Sporting), we lost motivation in the second half," the Mohun Bagan captain admitted.
"But I'm extremely disappointed with this attempt to make me the scapegoat. It's an internal matter and the club should not have made the letter public. I've been humiliated and now, I feel no urge to play for the green and maroons," a visibly peeved Baichung thundered before leaving the ground.
Soruce:TOI
The India captain called on the club's finance secretary Debashish Dutta and sought a release with immediate effect. The striker still has a year left in his two-year contract with the club.
"I no longer have any desire to play for Mohun Bagan after all that has happened. It's good, both for me and the club, to part ways in a peaceful way," Baichung said on Monday, on the sidelines of the team's practice session for the AFC Cup match against Al Karamah.
Mohun Bagan had on last Thursday slapped a showcause notice on Baichung, accusing him of remaining not "fully committed" to their I-League cause and skipping practice sessions repeatedly to shoot for a dance programme (Jhalak Dikhla Ja).
"It is evident that your focus has shifted from football and it has now become your secondary interest," club secretary Anjan Mitra had stated in the letter.
Baichung, however, didn't reply to the letter and instead, decided to take it on the chin, seeing in it an attempt to make him the "scapegoat" for Bagan's I-League failure.
"After playing for 17-18 years, I don't need to prove my commitment. From Day I, the club was aware of my schedules for the dance programme. I had been absent from practice only on Saturdays but never missed a match (in the I-League).
"It is there for everybody to see how I fared in the (I-League) matches against Chirag United, Dempo and Vasco at home. It's just that we had a bad game against Mahindra (in the final round).
However, when we learnt at half-time that Churchill were leading (against Mohammedan Sporting), we lost motivation in the second half," the Mohun Bagan captain admitted.
"But I'm extremely disappointed with this attempt to make me the scapegoat. It's an internal matter and the club should not have made the letter public. I've been humiliated and now, I feel no urge to play for the green and maroons," a visibly peeved Baichung thundered before leaving the ground.
Soruce:TOI
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