Durand Cup 2023: Crucial face-off between Rajasthan United and Indian Army

Both the teams will be desperate for a win to seal their spot in the next round

The penultimate day of the group matches of the 132nd IndianOil Durand Cup on Monday (August 21, 2023) will feature the first and only game at the East Bengal grounds in Kolkata between the Kerala Blasters and the Indian Air Force football team (IAFFT), followed by a crucial game in Kokrajhar’s SAI stadium between the Indian Army football team (IAFT) and Rajasthan United FC (RUFC).

The first Group C game in Kolkata has a scheduled kick-off at 3.00pm Indian Standard Time (IST) while the second Group F game which kicks-off at 6.00pm IST in Kokrajhar.

Key Kokrajhar clash

The final clash of Group F between the Indian Army Football Team and Rajasthan United FC will not only determine the fate of the two teams involved, but a few other teams in the tournament will also be looking at it with keen interest.

The Army men have a 100% record so far from their two games and have looked a solid all-round unit. RUFC have mostly flattered to deceive but have still managed to keep themselves in contention. Given the scenario, the Army can qualify even with a draw, but Rajasthan will need to win and win big to have hopes of making it through.

The Army’s coach Ramesh Anthony said in a pre-match presser, “Our preparations are good but it will be a tough match tomorrow as Rajasthan are a good team. The thing is even after winning two games we have not qualified as yet, so we have to go out tomorrow and win at any cost. Although we qualify even with a draw, but we will go out to win tomorrow.”

The same sentiment was echoed by captain Christopher Kamei when he said, “We are very motivated to win tomorrow’s game and we will give our 100% as usual. We will not play for a draw, but play to win.”

Whatever be the result, some teams from Kolkata will surely be watching the game very closely.

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