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Looking at East Bengal’s performances so far it’s clear that pre-season preparation wasn’t adequate. They have already had to do a lot of travelling as well because of AFC Cup and also have a huge fixture backlog to make up. So perhaps the I-League break in winter should be used to get the fitness levels up.
Marcos Falopa has to be blame for this situation as he had failed to prepare the team during the pre-season. Most of the African players joined the pre-season camp late which the club officials completely over sighted. Almost all the first team players are suffering from injuries just after 8 games! They lack pace and are getting tired after 70-75 minutes in a game.
Lack of stability
Instability in the coaching department has hampered the team’s performance
Over the years, Kolkata clubs have earned the reputation of changing their coach too frequently. East Bengal showed exception by retaining Trevor James Morgan for the past three years. But that seemed to have been too long for a coach in charge of a Kolkata club. It’s puzzling why Marcos Falopa was selected in the first place as Armando Colaco was available in the summer also always difficult for a coach to come in between a season and Colaco is also not used to the pressure in Kolkata. Although going by statistics he is the best Indian coach right now, even Colaco would require time to settle.
Stars under-performing
Star strikers misfiring
East Bengal on paper have the best squad in I-League. With several stars in all the departments, they were considered favorites to win the title. But luck does not seem to be on their side as all the star payers have gone out of form together. Edeh Chidi, James Moga and Ryuji Sueoka, the attacking trio have miserably failed so far. Goal machine Edeh Chidi has scored only 1 goal in the I-League. The 34-year-old Japanese attacker too has failed to deliver as per his reputation. The frustrating aspect of the South Sudan international is that, he doesn’t contribute much besides scoring. If these players do not find their scoring boots soon, the club would slowly fade away from title contention.
