New look East Bengal keen to arrest derby slide against Mohun Bagan

1657 days and counting. That's more than four years and six months when East Bengal last won against their bitter rivals Mohun Bagan in a Kolkata derby.

But with a new coach and a brand new team at helm, East Bengal will look to take fresh guard in Durand Cup's much-anticipated clash against their traditional rivals Bagan, here on Saturday.

Carles Cuardat, who coached Bengaluru FC to the Indian Super League title in 2018-19, offers a fresh ray of hope to turn the tide for the red-and-golds.

East Bengal finished ninth in their inaugural ISL season, while in 2021–22, they slumped to the bottom of the 11-team table, winning just one out of the 20 matches.

In the last season, they finished at ninth spot with six wins from 20 matches.

The Spaniard is well aware that he has a big task in hand, but having assembled a strong squad with the likes of Cleiton Silva and Javier Siverio up front, he has rekindled the hopes of fans.

'Supporters are great and supporting us throughout. We know how excited are they. We just want to tell them we are also working hard. We have a lot to give to them,' the 54-year-old East Bengal gaffer said in a media conference.

East Bengal had last won against Mohun Bagan, a 2-0 result, way back in January 27, 2019 in the I-League.

Since then, Mohun Bagan have won eight on the trot and drew once against East Bengal across all competitions.

'I come from a culture where Barcelona didn't win La Liga in 14 years (1959-60 to 1973-74), for 10 years (from 1974-75 to 1984-85),' said Cuadrat, who spent 12 years as a player with Barca's youth teams and was their fitness coach from 1998 to 2005.

'(At East Bengal) We are trying to create something with new players, trying to change the dynamics of the club. Based on the experience of my colleagues in ISL, it takes two to three years to succeed.' The Durand Cup derby will also mark the first big match of the season, before the teams go into the ISL mode.

On paper, Mohun Bagan, the ISL reigning champions, appear to be clear favourites to hold on to their bragging rights but the fact that the star-studded side is yet to come on their own will give Cuardat an opportunity.

Mohun Bagan assembled a young side that delivered a 5-0 win against a sloppy Bangladesh Army FT in the Durand Cup opener.

But against I-League champions Punjab FC, they appeared rusty in securing a 2-0 win.

While the first was a gifted own goal by Punjab, it took Mohun Bagan 48th minute to score their first goal.

'We know it's a team with a lot of power, won last year's (ISL) title and they are preparing for the AFC Cup. But we have a new team with some promising players,' Cuadrat said.

'Every match is an opportunity for us to improve our tactics and get ready for the season. Never say die attitude, we have to show that in the field.' East Bengal's premier striker Cleiton Silva, who won the Footballer-of-the-Year award at the club for his 14 goals and four assists in all competitions last season, will arrive only on Friday and thus will be a doubtful starter.

As for Mohun Bagan, they cannot afford to go all out as they have a much-important AFC Cup match in four days time.

'AFC Cup is important because it's international competition. Obviously, the players train, they are in the season and it's the last match before the AFC Cup, so we will look to win it,' said Mohun Bagan head coach Juan Ferrando.

'The matches (we won against East Bengal) were all in the past, our focus is on the present and win this to secure a passage to the next round.' Mohun Bagan have six points from two matches and another win will confirm their quarterfinal berth in the tournament.

East Bengal, on the other hand, have one point after drawing against Bangladesh Army FT. Six group toppers and two best runners-up complete the last-eight.

Mohun Bagan, who have also recalled their former coach Anotonio Lopez Habas this time as technical director, look like a football powerhouse having assembled a strong side in the transfer window.

They have a lot of goal scoring options in A-league winner Jason Cummings, Dimitri Petratos, Albanian international Armando Sadiku to go with the Indian duo of Manvir Singh and Liston Colaco.

Bagan's defence has added Anwar Ali to go alongside Australian Brendan Hamill.

'I'm happy we have a very good squad. It's difficult to pick an XI, but this is my job. The most important to think about is my plan and get the best out of each player,' Ferrando said.