East Bengal's coach, Oscar Brujon, had aspirations to illuminate the new year for the fans. However, despite competing in two matches thus far, his team has yet to secure a victory, suffering defeats in both encounters—first against Mumbai City FC and subsequently against their fierce rivals, Mohun Bagan.
The squad is currently grappling with injury concerns and disciplinary issues, which complicate the selection of the starting eleven, requiring the coach to deliberate extensively before each match. This Sunday, they will face FC Goa, who previously triumphed over them in the first league and have now ascended to the top four in the points standings.
Although FC Goa occupies a position in the top four, they have only managed to secure one victory out of three matches in the new year. Under the guidance of Indian coach Manolo Marquez, the team has drawn their last two matches, including one against Hyderabad FC, who are languishing at the bottom of the table.
This marked Hyderabad's third draw in the current league, and they also contributed to East Bengal's points loss in the final match of the previous year. While both teams find themselves in similar circumstances, FC Goa holds an advantage over East Bengal in several aspects.
Marquez's squad remains unbeaten in their last ten matches, with six victories to their name. Their last defeat occurred on October 19 against Mumbai City FC, and they also lost to Jamshedpur FC in their opening match.
Aside from these two losses, Goa has not faced defeat in the current league. Conversely, East Bengal is on the brink of their tenth loss, having secured only four victories in their last ten matches. Despite earlier successes against teams such as Northeast United, Chennaiyin FC, Punjab FC, and Jamshedpur FC towards the end of last year, their recent winless streak over the last three matches has prevented them from climbing above the eleventh position in the points table.
RED YELLOW CAMP:
The injury concerns within the red-yellow camp are escalating daily. French midfielder Madi Talal has been confirmed out for the remainder of the season. Spanish midfielder Sol Crespo is currently unfit to participate, as is Hector Yuster. Defender Mohammad Rakip was already listed as injured, and now two additional defenders, Anwar Ali and Prabhat Lakra, have also been added to the injury roster. Furthermore, it has been reported that the team's Brazilian forward and captain, Clayton Silva, is not in optimal condition.
Midfielder Shouvik Chakraborty, who recently returned from injury in the last match, has been suspended for this game due to a red card. This raises the pressing question of who will take the field, presenting a significant challenge for the coach.
Forward Richard Celis has recently joined the team from Venezuela, but there are uncertainties regarding his ability to acclimate to the new environment and his teammates in India. Nevertheless, the coach may be compelled to include Celis in the starting lineup, potentially pairing him with Dimitrios Diamantaks in the attack.
Oscar Brujon faced considerable difficulty in organizing the team for the Kolkata derby, having to position attacking players in defensive roles and vice versa. It appears he may need to adopt a similar strategy for this upcoming match.
Marquez, driven by desperation:
FC Goa, having not secured a victory in their last two matches, must achieve a win in this upcoming game to preserve their position at the top of the standings. Consequently, they will be highly motivated to overcome the challenging East Bengal side. The team's leading scorer, Armando Sadiku, failed to find the net in the most recent match, although he did score the sole goal in the match prior. He currently leads the scoring chart with nine goals.
Additionally, young midfielder Bryson Fernandes ranks as the second highest scorer for the team, contributing five goals. East Bengal may find themselves in jeopardy if these two players are not closely monitored. Notably, Borja Herrera, who netted a hat-trick against FC Goa in their initial league encounter, is sidelined due to injury and will not participate in this match.
Despite taking the lead in their last two matches, FC Goa has been forced to settle for draws after conceding late goals, a situation that must be concerning for Coach Marquez. While the team consistently finds the back of the net, they struggle to maintain defensive solidity.
They rank second to Mohun Bagan in total goals scored, with 29, yet they have also allowed 20 goals against them. Remarkably, despite remaining unbeaten in their last ten matches, they have only managed to keep a clean sheet on three occasions.
This raises questions about the defensive capabilities of players like Sandesh Jhingan, Odey Onaindia, and Jay Gupta. The pressing concern remains: if Sadiku and Bryson are effectively contained, who will step up to score for FC Goa? This scenario could prove crucial for East Bengal.
Statistical Theory:
FC Goa has achieved victory in all of their last five encounters with East Bengal. During these matches, they have netted a total of 12 goals while allowing six goals. This marks the highest number of consecutive wins Goa has secured against any team in the league. Furthermore, they have consistently scored at least one goal in their last 15 matches. Should they find the back of the net again on Sunday, they will break their own record set between December 2022 and October 2023.
Under the management of Manolo Marquez, the team has never suffered a defeat against East Bengal in the Indian Super League, boasting seven wins and two draws.
On the other hand, East Bengal managed to maintain a clean sheet in their most recent away match against Mohun Bagan. If they fail to score in the upcoming match on Sunday, it will mark the first instance in which the red-yellow brigade has not conceded a goal in two consecutive away games. To date, East Bengal has only achieved a clean sheet in one of the nine matches played against the Goan side. While East Bengal has garnered three points from a loss in the current league, FC Goa has dropped 13 points from a win, placing them behind NorthEast (14) in this aspect.
Notably, East Bengal has not scored in the first 15 minutes of any match in the current league season; however, they have successfully scored seven goals in the first quarter of the second half, with only Chennaiyin FC (8) surpassing them in this category.
The historical background of dueling:
The two teams have faced each other on nine occasions in the Indian Super League. FC Goa has emerged victorious six times, while East Bengal has secured a win on one occasion. The remaining two encounters ended in draws. In total, 32 goals have been scored in these matchups, with FC Goa netting 19 goals and East Bengal contributing 13 goals. Both draws resulted in a scoreline of 1-1 during the 2020-21 season. In the subsequent 2021-22 season, FC Goa triumphed in the first leg with a score of 4-3, but East Bengal retaliated by winning the second leg 2-1. In the 2022-23 season, FC Goa won their initial encounter 2-1 and followed it up with a 4-2 victory in the second match. Last season, the team from the Arabian Sea continued their winning form, claiming victories of 2-1 and 1-0. This trend has persisted, as FC Goa won the first league match this time with a score of 3-2.
Match: FC Goa vs East Bengal FC
Venue: Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, Margao
Time: January 19, 2024, 7:30 PM
Live Broadcast & Streaming: Sports 18-3- Bengali, Sports 18 Khel & Sports 18-2- Hindi, Sports 18-1 SD & HD- English; Geo Cinema- Bengali, Hindi, English, Malayalam.
