East Bengal vs Mohun Bagan Durand Cup 2023: Mariners look for 9-on-9, East Bengal looking to fight

Mohun Bagan Super Giant will take on East Bengal in the first Kolkata derby of the season in the Durand Cup 2023 at the Vivekananda Yuva Bharati Krirangan Stadium. Mohun Bagan, who have won all of the last eight derbies, will surely start as the favourites with one of the strongest squads in Indian football at the moment. Meanwhile, East Bengal are still struggling to find their mojo after a not-so-great start to the season. However, with nearly all the allotted tickets sold for the East Bengal vs Mohun Bagan Super Giant match, fans can expect some exciting football on the turf.

Match Details | East Bengal vs Mohun Bagan

Tournament: Durand Cup 2023
Date: 12/8/2023
Time: 4.45 pm
Venue: Vivekananda Yuva Bharati Krirangan Stadium

Where to watch the Mohun Bagan vs East Bengal match?

The East Bengal vs Mohn Bagan match will be streamed LIVE on Sony LIV and Sony Ten 2 channels on Television.

East Bengal vs Mohun Bagan | Head-to-head Stats

Since 2014, there have been 28 matches played between the Indian Football giants. East Bengal have won 6 times while Mohun Bagan have won 14 times. Six times both teams played out a draw.

Read Also: East Bengal vs Mohun Bagan: Head-to-Head Stats

Team News | East Bengal

East Bengal have found it hard in the last few seasons to make a mark and make their fans happy. However, after Carles Cudart's arrival at the club, the Red and yellow brigade will be hopeful of turning things around this time. They had a 5-4-1 lineup against Bangladesh Army Football Club and failed to win the game despite leading by 2-0 for the most part of the game. Cleiton Silva is still uncertain for the biggest of the season. Although the rest of the squad looks fit and good, with very less match time and training time, East Bengal might face some issues fielding their best lineup against Mohun Bagan Super Giant.

"We understand the value of this Derby. It will be a fantastic game with some fantastic atmosphere. We will give our best. We don't have the full squad but our practice is going well. Our guys are really hard working. We are trying to build a team for the future. The management is good. So we are expecting to put up a fight tomorrow and try to win," Carles said in the pre-match press conference.

Team News | Mohun Bagan Super Giant

Mohun Bagan on the other hand, unlike their counterpart, have the problem of having too many. With two-in-two wins in Durand Cup 2023 so far, Mohun Bagan have nearly fixed their place in the quarter-finals. Now, with AFC Cup match coming up next week, coach Juan Fernando will have to balance out his squad for this derby.

Mohun Bagan have already stated that AFC Cup is their main priority but they also know the importance of big matches like East Bengal vs Mohun Bagan. Hence, it will be interesting to see their lineup against an opponent who have not won a single match against them in last four years. They have also registered Jason Cummings and Anirudh Thapa for Durand Cup 2023 and are expected to get some minutes of the Kolkata Derby ahead of their AFC Cup clash.

"Derby is always a different match. We have to give our best tomorrow and get three points to go to the next round. Mohun Bagan is a big club so we have to be prepared for the CFL, Durand Cup, and AFC Cup. This time East Bengal has some good players. Mandar is a good player. In my opinion, we have a quality side so we have to make the best decision. We hope that we will do good tomorrow," Juan Fernando said in the pre-match press conference.