Kolkata Derby Update: East Bengal vs Mohun Bagan clash to be played from 8.15 pm

There was a lot of uncertainty and confusion surrounding the much-anticipated Kolkata derby due to the Trinamool meetings being scheduled at both Derby and Brigade simultaneously on the same day. The speculations and rumors that this generated led to concerns that the match's schedule might be altered or even relocated to another state. To address this situation with clarity and promptness, the Bidhannagar Police Commissionerate held a meeting with East Bengal, the derby host, on Tuesday to carefully consider and make a decision. As a result, it has been conclusively decided that the match will now begin at 8.15 pm on March 10 at Yuva Bharati, resulting in a delay of 45 minutes.

East Bengal are the host of the upcoming derby and the tickets will be printed on Tuesday afternoon. However, the match's time is yet to be finalized, which may result in some tickets not having the match time printed on them. According to a source from East Bengal Club, the match's time will be added to the tickets later. East Bengal fans will enter through gates 1, 2, and 3, while Mohun Bagan supporters will enter through gates 3A, 4, and 5.

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Bidhannagar Police Commissionerate requested East Bengal, the host club, to change the date of the match scheduled on March 10, as Trinamool, the ruling party of the state, had a meeting in Brigade on the same day. The officials cited their inability to provide enough police personnel at Yuva Bharati to ensure adequate security arrangements. Despite several rounds of meetings between the club authorities and police officials, the issue remained unresolved. Finally, Bidhannagar Police Commissionerate appealed to not hold the derby on either March 9 or 10.

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Firstly, it was speculated that the match day could be changed, but the ISL organizers refused to agree to this as it would disrupt the competition schedule. Another alternative was suggested, which involved moving the match to a different state. Bhubaneswar and Jamshedpur were the two cities that were being considered as potential venues for the match.

Complications arose on the day of the match, which was originally scheduled to begin at 7:30 pm. The presence of the brigade caused a delay, and the police informed the organizers that the game would start at 9 pm. However, the broadcasting channel disagreed and felt that a 30-minute delay was too much. They requested that the game to start at 8 pm instead. After a lengthy meeting, a compromise was reached, and the game was scheduled to start at 8:15 pm.