East Bengal will look for its first points of the Indian Super League (ISL) 2024-25 season when it takes on arch-rival Mohun Bagan Super Giant at the Salt Lake Stadium in Kolkata on Saturday.
EBFC fans hardly have anything to be optimistic about the clash for their club has lost all its matches in ISL this season. The poor form led to coach Carles Cuadrat’s exit. Former Bashundhara Kings manager Oscar Bruzon has now taken over.
MBSG, on the other hand, led by coach Jose Molina will be cautious of his defence, especially after a 0-3 loss to Bengaluru in its previous away game.
Sportstar looks at three key battles in the first major Kolkata derby in the league:
Jamie MacLaren vs Anwar Ali
The most important battle in this match has to be one between A-League’s record goalscorer and the most controversial transfer of Indian football in the last decade.
MacLaren, who won the Australian top-flight three times and the Golden Boot four times left Melbourne City with the most goals in the highest division of men’s football in his country.
After he moved to Mohun Bagan, he scored on his first ISL start in its 3-0 win over Mohammedan Sporting and looks set to be their regular No. 9 (centre forward) this season.
On the other side is Anwar, who moved to East Bengal this summer after prematurely terminating his loan contract. Though he is cleared to play for the Red-and-Gold Brigade, the sanctions around the deal are yet to be announced.
Anwar won the Durand Cup and the ISL Shield with Mohun Bagan last season and will be playing his former club for the first time. In front of hostile Mariners’ fans, he will hope to deliver a performance to prove his haters wrong.
And there would be no better way to do that than to stop the most lethal forward of the opponent in his tracks.
Anwar has had moments to forget with East Bengal – the Kwame Peprah goal for Kerala Blasters – so far but he has impressed in India duty against Vietnam in his previous match, which had two crucial clearances.
Returning to club duty, he will look to build on his confidence with a similar performance in the City of Joy.
Alberto Rodriguez vs Madih Talal
Madih Talal, the player with the most assists in the previous season (10), was the brightest player for Punjab in its otherwise underwhelming campaign.
Though he has failed to continue the form with East Bengal this season, his ability to read the game and make off-the-ball movements make him one of the most creative players in the league at the moment.
Be it set-piece opportunities or counterattacks, Talal is omnipresent, which could be a headache for Mohun Bagan. The antidote could be Spanish centre-back Alberto Rodriguez.
The 31-year-old announced his arrival in the ISL with a goal on his ISL debut against Mumbai City FC and the only match his team has lost was the one he did not play due to injury. Rodriguez could be tasked with marking Talal and rendering him powerless in the derby.
Apuia Ralte vs Jeakson Singh
Indian national teammates Lalengmawia (Apuia) Ralte and Jeakson Singh will face off in the boro match (big match), which will be a battle of their own.
Lalengmawia was monumental for Mumbai City FC last season, helping it win the ISL Cup. He replaced Joni Kauko in the middle of the park. Jeakson, on the other hand, moved from Kerala Blasters after five years but has yet to find positive results with his current club, losing all matches in the league so far.
But he could announce himself in Kolkata with an impressive performance on the biggest stage of maidan football(Kolkata circuit).
Both players would be on the pedestal to become the pivot, an ideal No. 6 who could decide how either team defends or switches to attack. And that is set to make their internal battle an interesting subplot on Saturday.
