Bhaichung Bhutia claims East Bengal are behind Mohun Bagan & 2025 will be a very good year for Indian football team

Bhaichung Bhutia has 27 goals to his name for the Indian Football Team.

Bhaichung Bhutia remains optimistic about the Indian national team’s ability to bounce back strongly at the international stage in 2025. The Blue Tigers had a gloomy 2024 in which they failed to win a single match, having a disappointing outing in the AFC Asian Cup after which Igor Stimac was also sacked from his role as head coach.

On Indian Football Team’s upcoming days

But Bhutia feels that Manolo Marquez will be able to bring a new dawn for India in 2025, where they’ll take part in the 2027 AFC Asian Cup qualifiers. Speaking to ETV Bharat about the Blue Tigers, the former India international stated: “There are many qualifier matches scheduled for India this year. Indian football is progressing. The new guys are playing well. 2025 will be a very good year for Indian football.”

The Blue Tigers ended 2024 in the 126th position in the FIFA World Rankings. There have been complaints from some fans that the Indian Super League (ISL) has done little to help improve the quality of the national team and take Indian football to newer heights. Bhutia, however, feels that the ISL is pivotal to providing a better platform for the Indian players to reach new levels.

He added: “Indian football has improved a lot since the launch of the Indian Super League. Many new boys are coming up. All these boys will perform well for the national team in 2025. Work hard, everyone. There will definitely be good results in the 2025 Asian Cup qualifiers.”

For the time being, the Indian national team is desperately missing a clinical forward like Bhutia – who scored 27 international goals for the Blue Tigers and led them to many championships. Manolo Marquez will hope to find a ruthless striker in time for the Blue Tigers’ matches, which begin from the 2025 March international break.

India are currently scheduled to take part in six international matches in 2025. First up is a friendly against Maldives on March 20, after which their AFC Asian Cup 2027 qualifiers begin with a match against Bangladesh on March 25.

The Blue Tigers will play five more qualifiers from the June to October period and must top their qualifiers group to book a place in the next AFC Asian Cup edition in Saudi Arabia.

On East Bengal’s current run of form

Bhutia also spoke on the current state of the 2024-25 ISL season, especially pertaining to Mohun Bagan and East Bengal. The ex-East Bengal forward claims that the Red & Gold Brigade are slightly lacking in terms of the quality of the squad as compared to Mohun Bagan. He feels that East Bengal are guaranteed to return to its former glory sooner than later.

“East Bengal FC is a little behind Mohun Bagan SG in terms of quality. However, they will surely return to its former glory gradually, ” he concluded.

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