East Bengal boss Carles Cuadrat: We are cautious, we have to keep up our form

EBFC won their last game by 5 goals.

East Bengal are aiming to pick up from where they left off in the Indian Super League (ISL) when they host Punjab FC at the Salt Lake Stadium, Kolkata on Saturday (9 December). The Red & Gold Brigaders are coming off the bench of a huge 5-0 thrashing of NorthEast United and aim for some of the same against the newly promoted ISL side.

EBFC coach Carles Cuadrat spoke to the media ahead of the vital clash against Punjab FC in the ongoing ISL 2023-24 in the pre-match press conference.

Carles Cuadrat wants East Bengal to build winning run

Carles Cuadrat insists that East Bengal needs to pick up their form and push to get more points after the recent result, saying:

“We have to think about our form and we’re happy with last performance. We haven’t achieved anything by getting a win last Monday; is only our second win in 7 games. We are cautious that we have to keep up our form and we have an opportunity tomorrow in front of our supporters to show that we’re a competitive team and get the three points.

I’m happy because of what I’ve seen from my players in training. It’s very important that they enjoy the game and also the same for the supporters, who are giving us a lot through this time. It is very nice to see the fans feeling proud of the team. We have to give them back, because they give us a lot from the tribunes.”

Thoughts on Punjab FC and their threats

The Spaniard is also extremely respectful to Punjab FC’s threat in the upcoming match, as he explained:

“They’re a very good team and have a squad that were a champion team last season. They deserved to be I-League champions by a large margin and have kept a lot of players from that team. They have a very good coach and very good foreigners as well. As we’ve seen till now, they’re putting in problems for teams. They troubled Bengaluru and kept the lead for a large part of the game. They troubled  Mohun Bagan with their counter-attacks and also gave a fight to  Mumbai. They are a pretty good team and we have the utmost respect for them.”

Cuadrat is aware of the threat that Juan Mera Gonzalez, a former East Bengal player, brings for Punjab FC but insists that he is not the only problem they’ll face. He explained: “Juan Mera is a brilliant player with very good technical skills, dribbling ability and very good left shooting. We must pay attention to him. He was a n important player for East Bengal in the past and the supporters love him.

“He’ll be motivated to perform against us and we must pay attention to him. But he’s not the only problem Punjab can give us. Luka (Majcen) has scored already 3 goals, Talal has being creating the most chances and they also have important players in defense. We have to be careful, they are a good team and they will be hungry to get finally a win after eight league rounds. They have got points in four games from eight, so they will be pushing for the opportunity to get the win,” he further claimed.

Khabra’s injury update and praise for PV Vishnu

Cuadrat also confirmed that Harmanjot Khabra has sustained a partial tear in his ligament on his left knee and opened up on his future as well as who can replace him, saying: “We don’t know yet. We’re trying to plan with the Doctors which treatment will be the best for him. He has some problems with his knee ligament, but it’s not full break. It’s a partial fracture to his ligament, so you can do different plans. We are talking with doctors to find the best solution for his case.

We have a full squad with a lot of players. We can work on different solutions to replace him. What’s important about Khabra is that not only as a player, but he’s also a leader and an important positive influence in the dressing room. He’s a very important player inside doors, so it’ll be a very big miss for us in that sense. It’s important to have leaders in the team, he’s one of our captains and he’s someone that we want to have really close to help the team,” he added.

The coach reserved some praise for promising youngster PV Vishnu, saying:  “He’s helping the team. It’s not easy to be a young player without experience at the top level to make the kind of impact he has. He is taking advantage of his opportunities. With the way he’s working, he’ll have more opportunities with us because every time that the team has needed him, he’s been giving us an accelerating factor and that is very important.”

Cuadrat’s ultimate goal to impress East Bengal fans

Finally, Cuadrat described his ultimate aim to bring back confidence and joy among the fans after the recent 5-0 win, and the importance of finishing games with multiple goals. He stated: “Scoring goals is always the main target in football. Your major aim is to score a goal. I think in the last game if NorthEast United had made it 2-1 with the chance they had in the first half, we would’ve then been in trouble. Because when you have a good advantage and lose it, doubts arrive.

“Football is an emotional game. But after half time we managed to score three more times to make it 5-0, so everyone was finally convinced that we were going to get the result. But I received messages that some fans in the stadium felt like that even when it was 4-0 in the 70’ minute, they were not still sure that we’d win the game. I understand that, because the supporters have been having very bad times for a long long time. So it is a consequence for them to be struggling in confidence.

“I understand that we are the ones who have to change that way of thinking with performances and results. That happens in other football cultures and countries also. I remember being a Barça fan in the 70’s and 80’s how big negativity was around the team because of the lack of consistency in the results. Only 1 league in 14 years. Also the club losing their first 2 Champions League Finals (in 1960 and 1986, that one in penalties). It’s normal for a club when you have spent so many seasons with things not going well, you might be low on confidence. It takes time to bring it back.

“I’m happy that we got the best result for the club in a lot of years last Monday, because previous 5-0 I think was back in 2019. So I’m happy that after four years, we are bringing some kind of happiness to the fans. From the start, we have been sending a message of positivity from the team, getting the best start to the campaign in ISL history, the biggest victory in ISL history, the “Boro Match” win after 9 games, a Final to play (Durand Cup) after so many years…. So it is a project of 24 months (2 years) but already have been a lot of positive things happening in only 5 months.

“We all together have to try and make work to build up this consistency and make the club mentally strong again. It’s the aim of all of us in the club. But one 5-0 win means nothing, only a very little step in the right direction. We have to keep working hard to reach our best possible level,” he finished with.

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