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I-League Crystal Ball Series: East Bengal
A new season is to kick-off and it’s time to look back and take stock of things. Everyone’s staring at the crystal balls (no pun intended!) and decoding their future...
19-Sep-2009 8:41:00 AM
Herein we shall do more of a hypothesis than get into
predicting what shall be the outcome! It was just the other day when a 14 year
old boy said to me: Football is a game of 90 minutes and anything can happen, so
never predict.
The statement’s so very true but if that’s the case probably, all experts would be out of job! You won’t have any favourites and the underdogs, which make the win even sweeter in taste at times.
Anyways too much of blabbering, I’m sorry for that. Let’s focus on the Kolkata giants, East Bengal.
Less than two weeks before the I-League kicks-off, one can see a sense of perplexity around the club. Too many things are being changed and one must remember that it’s similar to what happened last year as well.
Poor results in the Kolkata League and out went Manoranjan Bhattacharya and in came Stanley Rosario. Yakubu was roped in while the club was caught off guard with Edmilson’s illness and couldn’t get a replacement on time.
Ciao Edmilson!
This season, it isn’t much different. After a much publicized pre-season to Jagannath Puri and Myanmar with media reports comparing the coach’s system of multiple captains to John Buchanan, Greg Chappell and even Arsene Wenger (does he know about it?!), the club has suffered four straight defeats.
The East Bengal officials first appointed the football secretary to look into the team issues following the IFA Shield exit and have already put Subhash Bhowmick’s eye for talent in question by deciding to chuck the foreign players who arrived in the City of Joy in the hope to bring joy to the fans, which never happened.
What Went Wrong?
Yes, it’s the same Jan Berger, the cousin of former Liverpool star Patrik Berger, who would look after the player’s diet and nutrition as one of the leaders, who now according to the coach, doesn’t have what it needs to be successful in India!
When it came to transfers, East Bengal shall have the honours of being one of the stupidest in the market as they never really offered Subrata Paul a new contract. In the four matches they have had so far, the club has conceded 10 goals!
Does East Bengal Regret Now?
The coach has been blaming the defence for being unable to do their duties and even went to state that they practically have “no defence.”
They have a good list of defenders even after the exit of Surkumar Singh and M.Suresh, with the likes of Mehrajuddin Wadoo, who did a decent job as a center-back, one of the most promising defenders of the 2007-08 season, Nirmal Chhetri, the experienced Saumik Dey and Wasim Feroze who impressed with his displays for Mohammedan Sporting. Then there is Syed Nabi, who can also play as a full-back when needed. And not to forget the veteran defender Julius Akpele, who spent most of the last season in the JCT treatment room, who is to be unveiled in the coming week.
Bhowmick also added the need to shield their back four with a strong central midfielder and all these realizations come after the transfer window has been shut except for the foreign players. And in spite of acknowledging the holding player’s necessity, the club has gone for foreigner players in all slots except that!
In the midfield, East Bengal have a great set of players to choose from but so far, it has been their performance in the middle of the park which has raised eyebrows. They have used arguably one of the best midfielders from last season, Harmanjot Khabra as a full-back! They have Riston Rodrigues, Mehtab Hussain, Malswamkima and some excellent wingers in Renedy Singh, Alvito D’Cunha, Sanju Pradhan and Beingaichho Beokhokhei.
Can Alvito Inspire?
Yes, their forward line looks susceptible with only Yusuf Yakubu and Subhash Singh being the notable names. They are expected to sign Abel Hammond who wasn’t very effective in the role of a center-forward with Mumbai FC and was often drifted on the right where he made a mark with his crosses and bustling runs. But do they need someone with those qualities? Don’t they have a Sanju Pradhan who could do that?
Bhaichung Bhutia joining the Red and Gold’s depends on the fate of the ongoing battle with Mohun Bagan. His addition to the squad would infuse some positive energy but at this stage, the club needs much more than that.
Subhash Bhowmick would have to realise, the sooner the better, that living in the past doesn’t help (Oh Yeah! The ASEAN CUP 2002 truimph) and it’s high time that the club stops fantasizing about the AFC Cup and concentrates on the domestic competitions first.
Also too many tactical changes in every game and the players being played out of position has further deepened the crisis at East Bengal.
Perform Or Else!
Can they come up and surprise everyone with their performance in the I-League? Going by their present form and confidence levels, even a hardcore fan would have serious doubts and if they don’t, the frustration would be given vent to using...
Nope! I didn’t say stones!
Rahul Bali.
How do YOU think East Bengal shall perform in the I-League this season?
The statement’s so very true but if that’s the case probably, all experts would be out of job! You won’t have any favourites and the underdogs, which make the win even sweeter in taste at times.
Anyways too much of blabbering, I’m sorry for that. Let’s focus on the Kolkata giants, East Bengal.
Less than two weeks before the I-League kicks-off, one can see a sense of perplexity around the club. Too many things are being changed and one must remember that it’s similar to what happened last year as well.
Poor results in the Kolkata League and out went Manoranjan Bhattacharya and in came Stanley Rosario. Yakubu was roped in while the club was caught off guard with Edmilson’s illness and couldn’t get a replacement on time.
Ciao Edmilson!
This season, it isn’t much different. After a much publicized pre-season to Jagannath Puri and Myanmar with media reports comparing the coach’s system of multiple captains to John Buchanan, Greg Chappell and even Arsene Wenger (does he know about it?!), the club has suffered four straight defeats.
The East Bengal officials first appointed the football secretary to look into the team issues following the IFA Shield exit and have already put Subhash Bhowmick’s eye for talent in question by deciding to chuck the foreign players who arrived in the City of Joy in the hope to bring joy to the fans, which never happened.
What Went Wrong?
Yes, it’s the same Jan Berger, the cousin of former Liverpool star Patrik Berger, who would look after the player’s diet and nutrition as one of the leaders, who now according to the coach, doesn’t have what it needs to be successful in India!
When it came to transfers, East Bengal shall have the honours of being one of the stupidest in the market as they never really offered Subrata Paul a new contract. In the four matches they have had so far, the club has conceded 10 goals!
Does East Bengal Regret Now?
The coach has been blaming the defence for being unable to do their duties and even went to state that they practically have “no defence.”
They have a good list of defenders even after the exit of Surkumar Singh and M.Suresh, with the likes of Mehrajuddin Wadoo, who did a decent job as a center-back, one of the most promising defenders of the 2007-08 season, Nirmal Chhetri, the experienced Saumik Dey and Wasim Feroze who impressed with his displays for Mohammedan Sporting. Then there is Syed Nabi, who can also play as a full-back when needed. And not to forget the veteran defender Julius Akpele, who spent most of the last season in the JCT treatment room, who is to be unveiled in the coming week.
Bhowmick also added the need to shield their back four with a strong central midfielder and all these realizations come after the transfer window has been shut except for the foreign players. And in spite of acknowledging the holding player’s necessity, the club has gone for foreigner players in all slots except that!
In the midfield, East Bengal have a great set of players to choose from but so far, it has been their performance in the middle of the park which has raised eyebrows. They have used arguably one of the best midfielders from last season, Harmanjot Khabra as a full-back! They have Riston Rodrigues, Mehtab Hussain, Malswamkima and some excellent wingers in Renedy Singh, Alvito D’Cunha, Sanju Pradhan and Beingaichho Beokhokhei.
Can Alvito Inspire?
Yes, their forward line looks susceptible with only Yusuf Yakubu and Subhash Singh being the notable names. They are expected to sign Abel Hammond who wasn’t very effective in the role of a center-forward with Mumbai FC and was often drifted on the right where he made a mark with his crosses and bustling runs. But do they need someone with those qualities? Don’t they have a Sanju Pradhan who could do that?
Bhaichung Bhutia joining the Red and Gold’s depends on the fate of the ongoing battle with Mohun Bagan. His addition to the squad would infuse some positive energy but at this stage, the club needs much more than that.
Subhash Bhowmick would have to realise, the sooner the better, that living in the past doesn’t help (Oh Yeah! The ASEAN CUP 2002 truimph) and it’s high time that the club stops fantasizing about the AFC Cup and concentrates on the domestic competitions first.
Also too many tactical changes in every game and the players being played out of position has further deepened the crisis at East Bengal.
Perform Or Else!
Can they come up and surprise everyone with their performance in the I-League? Going by their present form and confidence levels, even a hardcore fan would have serious doubts and if they don’t, the frustration would be given vent to using...
Nope! I didn’t say stones!
Rahul Bali.
How do YOU think East Bengal shall perform in the I-League this season?
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