SC East Bengal can draw some confidence from their performance against Kerala Blasters FC which ended in a 1-1 draw and ended SCEB’s losing streak. SC East Bengal next face a depleted North East United FC on the 17th of December.
Coach Manolo Diaz and assistant coach Angel Puebla Garcia addressed the media ahead of their match against the Highlanders.
On Team news and injuries Manolo said, “Jackichand is injured and not training. Arindam is fit and trained with the team. Darren is recovering too. Other than that, we do not have any injury concerns”.
On his thoughts about SCEB’s performance in the past few weeks, Manolo said, “We must keep working and respect the squad we have. Some games, we could have won but we could not take advantage of opportunities that came our way”.
SC East Bengal are languishing at the bottom of the table with just 3 points from their 6 games so far. On the mood in the SCEB camp, Manolo said, “It is a difficult situation for us. We try our best to improve the mood in the squad. Every match is a challenge for us”.
SCEB’s opponents tomorrow, North East United FC are not in good form themselves and are just above SCEB in the points table. NEUFC have lost their last 2 matches, conceding 6 goals and scoring just once in the process. On the approach for tomorrow’s game against NEUFC, Manolo said, “We must keep going and bear in mind, our strengths. We should not commit mistakes that we did in previous matches. North East made the top 4 last season. This year they have not started well, and tomorrow will be a balanced game for both teams”.
Manolo Diaz was also asked to comment on the fitness levels of this squad and if he felt that it was a major factor in SCEB being bottom of the table. He said, “It is not a physical issue. There are many things involved like technical, tactical, and physical. Another factor is that the team started pre-season late”.
Long throw-ins have produced some goals over the past few weeks in the ISL. SC East Bengal’s Raju Gaikwad is known for his long throw-ins over the years. On long throw-ins being an attacking weapon for SCEB, Manolo said, “Our throw-ins are important for us and Raju is very good at this. However, a professional team must do many more things. A team must be compact, must press, must defend and attack to win games”.
SC East Bengal will be looking to get off the mark for the season with a win against North East United FC. However, it will never be easy against Khalid Jamil’s side who are also looking for an up-turn in their fortunes. With both teams desperate for a win, an exciting contest is in the offing.
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