ISL: Kolkata Derby to spread cheer in Guwahati on a Saturday evening

Kolkata’s loss has been like a windfall for the football-loving people of Guwahati. The Derby between Mohun Bagan Super Giants and East Bengal FC, the biggest crowd-puller fixture in Indian football, is expected to spice things up in the capital city of Assam on a chilly Saturday evening (11 January) after being shifted there due to logistical reasons.

The Indira Gandhi Athletic Stadium will be choc-a-bloc as per reports as ‘The Mariners’ — as Mohun Bagan are addressed — look to extend their dominant record over their city rivals, having won eight out of the nine encounters between the two teams in ISL history. The red-and-golden brigade are yet to record a victory against Mohun Bagan Super Giant in the elite league so far.

The date of the high-profile fixture, their first meeting of the New Year, was thrown in doubt with Bidhan Nagar Police authorities expressing their inability to provide necessary police cover as it clashed with the Gangasagar mela, scheduled in the state from 10-18 January. The names of a number of venues were floating about like Jamshedpur and Bhubaneshwar, but finally Mohun Bagan — for whom it’s a home game — opted for the North-East venue.

Mohun Bagan Super Giant are sitting comfortably at the top of the ISL table, boasting an impressive record of 22 goals scored against East Bengal FC. Their attacking unit, led by Dimitrios Petratos, Manvir Singh, Liston Colaco, Jamie Maclaren and World Cupper Jason Cummings has been one of the most relentless in the league with a goal-scoring average of 2.4 goals per game against their city rivals.

However, Mohun Bagan’s Spanish head coach Jose Molina knows well enough from his brief stay in the city that past performance doesn’t count for much in the big game. “What we did in the ISL so far doesn’t matter in tomorrow’s game. We need to perform well, defeat them in the 90 minutes tomorrow on the pitch,” he said.

East Bengal supporters, meanwhile, can take heart from a recent improvement in their performance graph under their new coach Oscar Bruzon. Much like in recent years, it’s going to be a tale of two Spanish coaches matching their wits again and Bruzon said: “We have to optimise the resources that are available to us and we have full confidence in the players who will take the field to play in the Kolkata Derby,” he said.

Venezuelan import

Scoring goals had been one of their problem areas and with an eye to address this area, the club management have strengthened their frontline by signing Venezuelan striker Richard Celis till the end of the season.  He has come in as an overseas recruit in place the injured midfielder Madih Talal, though it remains to be seen whether Celis plays any part in this match.

The match, set to kick off at 7.30 pm, will be streamed live on Jio Cinema (English, Hindi, Bengali, and Malayalam) and telecast live on Sports 18 – 3 (English, Hindi, Bengali, and Malayalam), Asianet Plus (Malayalam). Additionally, select ISL matches will be telecast live on Sports 18 – 1, Sports 18 – 2, Sports 18 – Khel, and Star Sports 3.