“Losers find excuses while the winners find solutions”, head coach Carles Cuadrat gave the message to the East Bengal fans on the eve of his team’s first match of the season, against Bangladesh Army in Durand Cup at the Salt Lake Stadium on Sunday.
The Spanish tactician who guided Bengaluru FC to the Indian Super League (ISL) title in 2018, is giving the East Bengal supporters hope about turning out a more productive season this time.
The team has not won a national level trophy in more than 10 years, with the last success coming in the form of the Federation Cup in 2012, and it has remained in the bottom half of the league table ever since it joined the ISL in 2020.
RELATED DURAND CUP INFORMATION:
- Durand Cup 2023 Full Schedule: East Bengal vs Mohun Bagan on August 12, Final on September 3
- Durand Cup 2023: All you need to know about Indian football’s oldest tournament; Schedule, groups, live streaming info
- Jamshedpur FC announces 22-member squad for Durand Cup
- Durand Cup 2023: Bengaluru FC announces 28-member squad
- East Bengal signs Jordan Elsey, Jose Antonio Pardo Lucas
“We will be trying to change the dynamics of the club and try to start a new process in East Bengal. The results have not come as per the expectations, but we need a process to build up the side and start winning matches,” Cuadrat said in his first interaction with the media on Saturday.
The Spanish coach, who spent five seasons with Bengaluru FC, said his objective will be to bring an end to the negativity in the East Bengal supporters as the team failed to bring success over the years.
“We will try to put our sincere effort to get East Bengal supporters out of that feeling of negativity and bring some positive results in the season. We have a new squad and only a couple of players have been retained from the previous season. This gives us a scope to approach the season in a new way,” he said.
Cuadrat said his efforts will be to get the team in the best competitive spirit.
“We understand there will be a lot of interruptions in the season because of the National team’s engagements but that will be the same for every club. We will try to get the best out of the calendar and see that the players are in the best of their competitive spirit,” he said.
East Bengal will face Bangladesh Army during Durand Cup match on Sunday. | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
“Some teams have more money than us, but we will be adjusting to the possibilities that we have. And we will try our best to be competitive and get the best result in every match,” assured Cuadrat.
East Bengal will be playing its first Kolkata derby - against Mohun Bagan Super Giant - of the season, on August 12, in the group stage of the Durand Cup.
“It is fantastic to play a derby and I have experienced one back home when it comes to the clash between FC Barcelona and Espanyol FC. I have a lot of respect for East Bengal supporters. We will try to be competitive and get the best result,” said the head coach acknowledging his team’s lack of wins in the last eight meetings against The Mariners.
“We also need to understand that Mohun Bagan is the ISL champion and will have the advantage. In the last three seasons our team has been at the bottom of the table. We will definitely try to change the dynamics and turn things around,” Cuadrat said to cheer up the fans before the big match.
Comments
SHARE