Mohun Bagan terms Steve Darby a politician

Mohun Bagan on Friday hit out at their former coach Steve Darby terming him as a 'politician' in a raging war of words on the eve of the I-League.

A day after Darby slammed 'stone age' administration of Mohun Bagan following his resignation as chief coach, the club's president Swapan Sadhan Bose in a media statement said the coach was trying to malign the club with a bruised ego.

"Why did Darby not have the guts to point out these things while he was here in Kolkata. This proves that he is not a football coach but actually a politician," Bose said.

"He has also said that often the press used to act as informers of the club management, a feeling which is highly deplorable and condemnable," he added.

Bose further accused Darby of mud-slinging to hide his weaknesses.

In a media statement, Darby had accused the club officials of living in the "stone age" and asked the club sponsor UB Group to take it up.

"I was repeatedly told Bagan was a big club, a powerhouse in Asia. But I remember on the first day, cleaning cow waste off the pitch. Trying to scrape the mould and rust off the gym equipment in a flooded gymnasium," Darby said sarcastically.

"The administration of the game has to be modern, not stone age at club and state level."

Darby also wrote the club stabbed him in his back by leaking confidential reports to the media.

"They used to send messages via the media. The same media I was told not to trust!" he said.

Darby felt the club had great potential especially if the sponsors, UB Group, is allowed to modernise the administration and bring in the right systems and structures.

"At the moment there is no press officer or a marketing manager and no club shop. UB are a top class professional organisation, they have the ability to take the club to the next level and indeed make it a big club."

Mohun Bagan begin their I-League campaign against Pailan Indian Arrows on October 23.