xtratime Logo

[caption id="attachment_5675" align="alignnone" width="580"] East Bengal footballers at practice ahead of their tie against Bengaluru FC . Image Source : Xtra Time[/caption] Kolkata : East Bengal’s new French recruit Bernard Mendy is likely to be present at the Barasat Stadium tomorrow to cheer his new team team mates . East Bengal is scheduled to play Bengaluru FC at the Barasat Stadium in a crucial fifth  round encounter on Saturday. After much hiccups Mendy has finally got his visa and  will be soon fly out to Kolkata. Mendy’s visa is valid from 28^th January and is due to expire on  27^th july. Although Mendy will be not available for the Bengaluru FC clash his presence will certainly give a morale boost to the team. The French international is due to reach the city tomorrow . Mendy tweeted about his arrival to Kolkata and have also changed his whatsapp dp . He tweeted “ New Challenge , New Team , New Family , Thanks @eastbengalfc @arunava98300 for that opportunity will try to do my best ” [caption id="attachment_5907" align="alignnone" width="580"] Bernard Mendy tweeted about his coming to play for East Bengal . Image Source : twitter@mendy_bernard[/caption] Mendy had earlier played for PSG, Bolton Wanderers. He also had a brief stint with Hull City. Mendy will fill the fourth foreigners slot  after Bello Rassaq, Ranty Martins and Do Dong Hyun. Mendy’s all round show in the ISL with champions Chennaiyin FC have caught the attention of everyone . The French footballer will no doubt  lend much solidity to the  East Bengal defence . He can also play in the midfield . It goes to be seen which position he is been given by East Bengal  coach Biswajit Bhattacharya . Mendy will be available for the Aizawl FC match on 5^thFebruary. The Red and Gold gaffer would have to rely a lot on the 34 years old defender to do well in the I League . Meanwhile there are a few injury concerns for Biswajit Bhattacharya ahead of his tie with Bengaluru FC . Side backs  Robert , Soumik Dey  and Harmanjot Singh Khabra are all unavailable against the reigning  I League runners . Good news though is that Cavin Lobo is fully fit now and is available for selection against Ashley Westwood’s men . Dempo’s Narayan Das  is all set to make his debut with Red and Gold . He will be replacing Soumik Dey . East Bengal coach Biswajit Bhattacharya looked confident 24 hours before the match ,“ We will take  heart out from Mumbai FC’s win against Bengaluru . The Mumbai team did expose the loop holes in their squad . It’s our turn now to sneeze the opportunity .” The gaffer also added , tommorow’s match is going to be the decider for East Bengal . “ I think it’s going to be a very crucial match for us as we cannot afford to lose points as it will push us back in the league table . A win against Bengaluru FC will keep our hopes alive for the coveted title .” Asst. Coach Sammy Omollo feels  Bengaluru’s two central defenders Osano and Johnson are the weak link as they are very slow .“We have to take the advantage as both of them are slow movers on the field . ” . Talking about Bengaluru FC captain Sunil Chhetri , Omollo felt , “ Sunil will be tired after playing the ISL and SAFF Cup . At least the first four matches indicated so . I am confident our defenders  Arnab and Bello will find no difficulty to stop the striker from scoring .” Bengaluru FC coach Ashley  Westwood is not too concerned about his side’s loss against Mumbai FC ,“ We have to play the first 5 matches away from home . Out of which we won 3 and lost 1 . I am not bothered about our loss against Mumbai  FC as one cannot win all the matches .” The Brit have set his  sights in the next 4 matches which according to him will decide which way the Blues  are heading  this season . On being asked to compare the current East Bengal squad with the one they last played against , Westwood heaped high praises on the current squad ,“ East Bengal  have been bolstered by the inclusion of Dong . He has been the livewire with his swift moves . Ranty Martins have a wealth of experience . Then you have the experienced Bello Rassaq and Arnab Mondal in the defence . Rahul Bheke and Bikash Jairu also have been very consistent so far . “ The Blues changed their practice schedule at the last moment today . They were supposed to train at Barasat . According to the gaffer ,“ We do not want anyone to watch our practice sessions before the match “ Rino Anto , who was with Atletico de Kolkata in ISL last season said ,” My focus now is on tomorrow’s match against East Bengal . It’s a new match and a new tournament for me . All I want is to help my team win tomorrow “ East Bengal Probables : Rehenesh TP , Narayan Das , Bello Rassaq , Arnab Mondal , Rahul Bheke , Bikash Jairu , Mehetab Hossain , Md Rafique , Avinash Ruidas , Dong and Ranty