East Bengal will take on relegation-threatened Salgaocar in an I-League fixture Sunday at the Barasat District Sports Stadium in Kolkata.
The Red-and-Gold brigade have been in good form in this new season of the I-League. With just one loss against Bengaluru FC last month, East Bengal will look to inch closer to league leaders Mohun Bagan.
East Bengal are four points behind their arch-rivals, and will be eyeing the second spot in the points table Sunday. If they manage to win against the men in green Sunday, they will be just a point away from the table-toppers.
Biswajit Bhattacharya's men have scored a number of goals this season. They will look to continue with their goal-scoring form. Ranti Martins, especially, has been in top form. His first-half hat-trick against Shillong Lajong in their previous game powered East Bengal to a 4-0 victory. The men in Red and Gold will be beaming with confidence Sunday as they face Salgaocar.
The men in green need nothing but three points from this match. It is obvious it will be an uphill task for Santosh Kashyap's men against the in-from East Bengal. But if they want to avoid the threat of relegation, they will have to colect three points from this encounter, which will be gold dust for them.
Salgaocar will be without two crucial members — Jackichand Singh and Seityasen Singh — Sunday, when they lock horns with East Bengal. Jackichand is injured while Seityasen has family commitments.
For East Bengal, Samad Ali and Rahul Bheke have been sidlined due to injuries.
"Earlier, we used to be on top of the table and the rest of the pack chased us. However, this year the scenario is different as Mohun Bagan and Bengaluru FC are sitting at the top and we are chasing them," East Bengal manager Biswajit Bhattacharya was quoted as saying by Goal.com.
"Look, Salgaocar haven't started well but have bounced back well under Kashyap's tutelage. Their playing style has changed. Darryl Duffy also has scored seven and we have to restrict him from scoring," he said.
Where to watch live
East Bengal vs Salgaocar is scheduled to kick off at 4:30 p.m. IST (4 p.m. PST, 11 a.m. GMT, 6 a.m. EST).
In India (and the rest of the Asian subcontinent), viewers can catch the game on Ten Action. Online streaming will be available on tensports.com.
Viewers in Germany, Austria, Russia, Switzerland and Gerogia can catch up with the game with online streaming will be available on LAOLA1.
Other countries can follow the I-League live scores on the I-League Twitter handle.
