The agreement between ISL franchise ATK and Mohun Bagan will be signed on Thursday if everything goes to plan. Till late on Wednesday though, both sides remained tight-lipped about the agreement.
According to a source, nothing can be said till both parties sit down and ink the deal. “Deliberations are still on and will continue on Thursday morning too. Till the agreement is signed nothing can be said. It’s a very touchy thing for both stakeholders,” someone who is privy to the deal told The Telegraph on Wednesday evening.
In all probability, the new entity will be named ATK-Mohun Bagan. “It could be Bagan ATK or just Bagan. As long as the agreement is not there we can’t say anything,” the source said.
The agreement was supposed to be signed on Wednesday but it was held back at the last moment. “Certain things need to be sorted out. But one thing is for sure, both the parties want this deal to happen. There is no doubt on that,” the source revealed.
Eighty per cent stake is expected to be with ATK of which RP-SG’s Sanjiv Goenka is the principal owner. The rest would be with Mohun Bagan where Swapan Sadhan Bose, his son Srinjoy and close aide Debasish Datta are the major players. There is one school of thought that the Bagan brass is averse to the name ATK being used as a suffix to the name Mohun Bagan. RPG-SG is something they would not complain about.
“These are all speculations. Please wait till the deal is done,” the source added.
ATK have won the ISL in 2014, the inaugural year, and 2016, while Bagan brought home the I-League in 2014-15. If the deal materialises, Bagan will be seen in ISL.