XtraTime Web Desk: In-form Quess East Bengal FC host Real Kashmir FC on Friday, at Kolkata’s Vivekanada Yuba Bharati Krirangan in a 12th Hero I-League clash which has assumed significance, given that a win for either sides will take them to the top of the table. The injury during the training for in-form forward Krizo.
Real Kashmir have played nine games till now and their 17 point tally puts them in second position, just one point behind league leaders Chennai City FC. A win against the hosts on Friday will put them two points clear at the top.
The Kolkata giants have played a game less and are lying third with 15 points. They are in red-hot form, having won three on the trot after three consecutive defeats.
The highlight of their recent winning run being a victory against arch-rivals Mohun Bagan in the famous Kolkata Derby, followed by a professional away victory against the in-form Churchill Brothers.
Scottish coach David Robertson has put together a resilient Real Kashmir side, which did not look so at the outset. But a key new signing in Ghanain Abednego Kofi Tetteh and the inclusion of players like wingers Nagen Tamang and Surchandra Singh and Abhash Thapa in defence has brought about positive transformation lately.
“It feels enthusiastic! We are a new team and we are enjoying the experience. Last season we didn’t expect to be here,” said Robertson, on the eve of the match. “We have played 9 games now…. in that we have lost two games, and even in the lost two games, we have managed to keep the consistency this season.”
This has resulted in them being the first side to have beaten table toppers Chennai, which they achieved in their last game.
The Red and Golds, under the tutelage of Alejandro Menendez Garcia, have blown hot and cold this season. They started off fluently with two facile victories before going into a rut, and have since then resurrected themselves again and look like they mean business now.
East Bengal coach Alejandro Menendez said, “It’s going to be a difficult match tomorrow, but we have to be very attentive so that we can win this match. We don’t want to lose, we want to play for winning only.
“I have two centre-backs to stop the two strikers Krizo and Tetteh, and hence not worried about them. it will be one on one.”
New recruit, 23-year-old Spanish forward Jamie Santos Colado, looks to be a winner with the youngster scoring the goal of the season in their last game.
Kerala striker Jobby Justin has also been a revelation for the ‘Red & Golds’ this season, with five goals to his name.
It is going to be a clash between the league’s most prolific attack, with East Bengal having scored 16 times so far, and its most stingy defence, with Kashmir having conceded just five till date. With the motivations at play, it is sure to be an exciting clash at the VYBK under lights.