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It has been a rough start to the season for East Bengal, with the club struggling to build team chemistry. The Red and Gold Brigade have recently managed to assemble a quality squad, and more importantly, a head coach who knows the ins and outs of Indian football. However, getting them to play together might take some more time.
Stephen Constantine, who previously served as the head coach of the Indian national team, started off his managerial career at East Bengal FC with a 0-0 draw against the Indian Navy in the Durand Cup opener.
Some of the players looked out of shape owing to a reduced pre-season. But in their next tie against Rajasthan United FC, there were clear signs of EB getting up to pace.
However, in the all-important Kolkata derby on Sunday, August 28, there are some clear areas that Constantine will need to work on if East Bengal are to beat ATK Mohun Bagan.
#1 Off-the-ball movement from the East Bengal players
Due to the degrading quality of their training ground and the delay in starting the pre-season, the Torchbearers have looked rusty on the pitch. The entirety of the foreign contingent is yet to arrive in the city. So fitness and stamina is one aspect where EB are expected to struggle.
Now with two games under their belt, the players are steadily growing in match fitness and Constantine will have to marshal them well off-the-ball. Juan Ferrando's side have historically preferred to enjoy possession and get into a rhythm.
The Red and Gold Brigade can't allow for that to happen. The holding midfield duo of Amarjit Singh Kiyam and Alex Lima will have a lot of responsibility on their shoulders to break ATK Mohun Bagan down during the transition play.
Meanwhile, V.P. Suhair and the other forwards will have to press from the front given the Mariners have shown signs of weakness while playing out from the back.
#2 Tying down Hugo Boumous in the middle of the park
For ATK Mohun Bagan, Hugo Boumous is the central piece of the attacking puzzle. The French-Moroccan international is a shrewd player in the final third who plays in the hole and feeds the wide forwards from deep. He orchestrates the play from just outside the box and is even well-adept in scoring if the opportunity presents itself.
While in modern day football, man-marking isn't essentially prevalent, East Bengal FC have to be wary of Boumous' presence and use the likes of Amarjit and Lima to cover the passing channels. The centre-backs will be responsible for spotting and covering the inside runs of Liston Colaco and Kiyan Nassiri.
But Constantine will have to ensure that his players are constantly aware of the threat presented by Hugo Boumous.
#3 Defensive cushion on the flanks
Juan Ferrnado has some of the most prudent wide attacking forces in his arsenal. With the likes of Asish Rai, Liston Colaco, Kiyan Nassiri, Manvir Singh, and new signing Ashique Kuruniyan, ATK Mohun Bagan are capable of dismantling opposition defenses down the flanks.
East Bengal and Stephen Constantine will have to safeguard the flanks so that the Mariners cannot utilize the space and feed the ball to the central players. One of Amarjit or Lima can be deputized to cover the flank that is facing a charge from the opposition.
A lot of responsibility will be on the shoulders of the full-back pairing Mohammad Rakip and Jerry Lalrinzuala. Meanwhile, wingers Aniket Jadhav and Tuhin Das can also drop deep to double down on the ATKMB attackers in protecting their flanks.
