Mohun Bagan midfielder Mehtab Hossain to retire after CFL

The sturdy midfielder has decided to hang up his boots after the completion of the ongoing CFL...

Mohun Bagan midfielder Mehtab Hossain has announced his decision to retire from football after the ongoing Calcutta Football League (CFL) 2018 ends.

The former India international made his decision public through a social media post.

The post read: "I am not that active in social media. But I have chosen this medium to announce the most important decision of my life to avoid any misunderstanding. Even before this season had started I had taken a decision that I would retire after playing a handful of matches. The time has come to announce my decision.

"I intend to hang up my boots after the completion of the ongoing CFL. I don't know in how many matches I will appear. But all I can say is that I will put my best whenever I will get an opportunity. My aim is to crown Mohun Bagan as league champions after many years. I hope that I will get everyone's love and support in the last few days.

"I started playing the national league with Tollygunge. Then I donned the colours of Mohun Bagan, East Bengal, the India national team and played in the Indian Super League (ISL). I have played football for two long decades. I have received a lot of love from Kolkata Maidan. Some have criticized as well. Maybe because I have been able to create a place in their hearts, I have been discussed and criticized.

"Whatever popularity and fame I have received it is because of you people. I thank my coaches and officials for giving me the opportunity. I thank all my friends from the media fraternity as well. I thank all the football fans of Bengal those who have stayed beside me through thick and thin."

Hossain was supposed to don East Bengal colours this season after being in talks with them but Mohun Bagan signed him up at the 11th hour before the start of this season. This marked his return to Maroon and Green colours after 12 years. He played the prime years of his football career for East Bengal from 2007-2016. In 2015, the Kolkata based defensive midfielder retired from international football after he was dropped from the 26-man squad for the world cup qualifiers.

Hossain has been an ISL regular as well since the inception of the tournament in 2014. After spending the first three seasons with the Kerala Blasters he was picked up by Jamshedpur FC in the third round of the 2017–18 ISL Players Draft. After ending the season with Jamshedpur, Hossain reportedly decided not to renew his contract with the club since he wanted to return to Kolkata and spend more time with his family.

He put in a man of the match performance against NBP Rainbow AC in the last match of CFL as his inch-perfect deliveries from set-pieces were converted to goals which helped Mohun Bagan win the match 3-2.