An upbeat East Bengal FC aim to continue their winning momentum against Odisha FC
After registering a 2-1 win over Bengaluru FC, their first in the Hero Indian Super League in Kolkata, East Bengal FC will now face Odisha FC in their next outing at Bhubaneswar’s Kalinga Stadium on Saturday (January 7) evening.
Riding the momentum and confidence of the win over the Blues, EBFC Head Coach Stephen Constantine and his troops would be looking to defeat the Juggernauts for the first time since January 2021. The last time these two sides met, Odisha FC beat East Bengal FC 4-2. Semboi Haokip and Naorem Mahesh Singh put EBFC 2-0 up in the first half, but Pedro Martin scored a brace and Jerry Mawihmingthanga and Nandhakumar Sekar struck a goal each in the second half to seal the contest.
EBFC currently occupy the ninth spot on the league table with 12 points from 11 matches (4 wins and 7 losses). OFC, meanwhile, are placed 6th, having amassed 19 points (6 wins, 1 draw and 5 losses) and played a game less.
As far as the head-to-head record is concerned, the two sides have faced each other five times with OFC winning four of those.
Addressing the media ahead of the game, Constantine said, “Look, I want to win every game I play. There isn’t an East Bengal player who doesn’t want to win every game he plays. For that we need to make less mistakes and do the right thing at the right time. We need to understand our roles better and what’s required. I definitely think we can win 4/5 of the remaining 9 games, but we have to win those.”
EBFC midfielder Mobashir Rahman, who was out of action for a week due to an illness, acknowledged the work put in by the support staff to help him recover. The 24-year-old said, “After my illness, our coaches helped me a lot on my way to recovery. They motivated me a lot and explained how I could get better in every training session. They helped me become a better team-man. I want to give my best in each training session so that I can start regularly and help East Bengal as much as possible.”
Riding the momentum and confidence of the win over the Blues, EBFC Head Coach Stephen Constantine and his troops would be looking to defeat the Juggernauts for the first time since January 2021. The last time these two sides met, Odisha FC beat East Bengal FC 4-2. Semboi Haokip and Naorem Mahesh Singh put EBFC 2-0 up in the first half, but Pedro Martin scored a brace and Jerry Mawihmingthanga and Nandhakumar Sekar struck a goal each in the second half to seal the contest.
EBFC currently occupy the ninth spot on the league table with 12 points from 11 matches (4 wins and 7 losses). OFC, meanwhile, are placed 6th, having amassed 19 points (6 wins, 1 draw and 5 losses) and played a game less.
As far as the head-to-head record is concerned, the two sides have faced each other five times with OFC winning four of those.
Addressing the media ahead of the game, Constantine said, “Look, I want to win every game I play. There isn’t an East Bengal player who doesn’t want to win every game he plays. For that we need to make less mistakes and do the right thing at the right time. We need to understand our roles better and what’s required. I definitely think we can win 4/5 of the remaining 9 games, but we have to win those.”
EBFC midfielder Mobashir Rahman, who was out of action for a week due to an illness, acknowledged the work put in by the support staff to help him recover. The 24-year-old said, “After my illness, our coaches helped me a lot on my way to recovery. They motivated me a lot and explained how I could get better in every training session. They helped me become a better team-man. I want to give my best in each training session so that I can start regularly and help East Bengal as much as possible.”