Oscar Bruzon outlines two factors that can help East Bengal's qualify ACL knockout rounds

East Bengal will look to grab three points against Nejmeh SC.

Oscar Bruzon’s East Bengal plays their most important match of the 2024-25 AFC Challenge League when they face off against Nejmeh SC on Friday (1 November) in the ‘group decider’. Whichever team wins this match will automatically earn a place in the knockout stages of the continental tournament.

Oscar Bruzon’s side produced a dominant display in their previous match against Bashundhara Kings, thrashing them by a 4-0 margin. They will hope to maintain that momentum against the stubborn Nejmeh SC side, which has yet to concede a goal in the competition so far.

Despite knowing Nejmeh’s attacking prowess and compact shape, Oscar Bruzon has indicated that his side will not lower their aggressiveness or high-pressing style. Ahead of the game, Oscar Bruzon stated: “Well, aggressive is not only possible because of the shape. If the players are not committed, the aggression depends on how we can help in the pressing.

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“Aggression is only a consequence of doing more work and understanding that we want to go forward. To do so, we must be more compact and shorten the distance between players. I feel we have played positive games, especially in the last match. We adjusted some of the problems we had, especially in the first half we looked so aggressive in the frontline and doing better in our attacks,” Oscar Bruzon added.

Oscar Bruzon’s plan

Oscar Bruzon also urged his team to maintain the same intensity they displayed in the first half against Bashundhara, but potentially maintain those energy levels for longer parts of the game. Bruzon claimed: “In the first half in the last game, it was a beautiful act of football. As I stated, it’s not about being dominant for 45 minutes but slowly progressing and having the players get accustomed to playing high-intensity football for larger parts of the game.”

East Bengal can move into the quarter-finals of the AFC Challenge League with a win against Nejmeh SC. But there is a chance they might get to the stages even if they suffer a slender loss. The Red & Gold Brigade are currently on top of the ‘best third-placed team’ table between the three groups in the West Region of the competition.

As long as Abdysh-Ata Kant and Hilal Al-Quds can’t win their games, East Bengal will retain their spot as the best third-ranked team even after a defeat. But knowing Oscar Bruzon’s mentality, he will never play for a draw or settle for a narrow loss and he’ll urge his side to keep pushing for a win to top the group and move into the quarter-finals in dominant fashion.

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