East Bengal desperate to maintain winning streak before Derby

East Bengal players during a practice session today. Pic Courtesy: Xtratime
East Bengal players during a practice session today.
Pic Courtesy: Xtratime

Kolkata: Though the next game will be against Southern Samity, the pressure of the prestigious Kolkata derby is lurking somewhere at the back of the mind of East Bengal coach Khalid Jamil. Although reluctant to comment on this matter Khalid claimed that he is focusing for the upcoming game and not thinking about the derby. When confronted by the reports about the brilliant performance of Kamo in the previous game, Khalid said the former player of his team is a good player. Khalid has also claimed to have watched only one game of the arch-rivals i.e Mohun Bagan, however as per report from sources, the coach of the Red and Gold brigade has kept all news of his rival team and had reportedly sent his Goal Keeping coach Siddhiqui in the previous game of Mohun Bagan to know more about the rivals.

East Bengal will be facing Southern Samity in their fourth match of the CFL and would be looking to continue their winning run on a trot as the Kolkata giants look to be in some impeccable form. In the previous game the Red and Gold brigade thrashed a helpless Peerless to register a 5-1 victory.

Today at a practice session under the guidance of Coach Khalid Jamil, the players underwent endurance test and other test. Along with that the players formed small teams and practiced against one another.

Striker Willis Plaza is injured after he suffered a right knee injury in the previous game and he underwent practice session with the injury while Carlyle Mitchell owing to an waist injury which he suffered in the Customs game didn’t complete the full training after seeking permission from the coach  . Both the foreigners Plaza and Mitchell would be leaving for their country as both would be playing for the national squad of the Trinidad and Tobago. As of now the tickets are not confirmed but the players are confident of getting tickets by tomorrow.

As the key players would be not in the squad for the upcoming games, Khalid Jamil would miss the services of both the foreigners along with four Indian players who has travelled to the Indian camp. Jamil would be keen to try out his bench strength in the next games to come.

“All matches are important and Southern Samity is a good team and would give a tough competition to us. As of now I am not bothered about the derby although there is pressure but now I am focusing about the upcoming game” said Khalid Jamil.

“This is the biggest club and it’s a great experience to play here. I will try to work hard and get a chance in the team. I am playing in the CFL for the first time and it’s a great opportunity for me” said Richard Costa.

“We got ample time to prepare for the second division I-League, however for the CFL we were not sure as to whether we would be playing or not. Given the circumstances the team is in dismay. There are many players who have never played in Kolkata before and playing with them becomes a tough job. It is tough to motivate the players and we are not even thinking of a victory against East Bengal” said Hemanta Dora, the coach of Southern Samity.