Why East Bengal must fix their disciplinary record after receiving red cards in successive matches?

East Bengal have received many red cards in this ISL season.

East Bengal have faced a major number of problems in their gloomy start to the 2024-25 Indian Super League (ISL) season. With just one point from seven games, including six straight losses, the Red & Gold Brigade have severely underperformed in the top division and struggled to gain any kind of positive momentum in the first few months.

Even new head coach Oscar Bruzon has not been able to inspire them to a win after three matches in charge. Alongside many of the team’s chemistry issues and goal-conceding nature, East Bengal have also had a pretty dismal disciplinary record so far in the ISL this season.

East Bengal have seen four players receive red cards in just seven matches this season, which included two sending-offs in their recent draw against Mohammedan Sporting.

That means they average one red card every two games or so, which is unacceptable at this level. Being down to 10 men or lower automatically restricts any team’s ability to win matches and the Kolkata heavyweights must stop the red card issue to have any progression this season.

To do so, Bruzon must put down the hammer on his squad and bring some sensible changes to his players’ approach to matches.

Need for players to be more composed on the pitch

East Bengal might’ve been victims to some dubious refereeing decisions this season, but they cannot let a few bad decisions disrupt their rhythm and concentration levels.

Their players have often lost their cool in key moments of matches, resulting in the sending-offs and them going onto drop points in those matches. Bruzon has to urge his players to be calmer mentally and not react to some questionable decisions emotionally. The players have to be much cooler in approaching matches and take referee decisions into their stride.

If they continue to be triggered when decisions don’t go in their favor, the East Bengal players will never be able to gain proper match-winning momentum or maintain their rhythm for long.

Be it the senior players of the squad telling their younger ones to take it easy during matches or fines being implemented for bookings picked up in matches, some major decisions must be made to ensure this unnecessary aggression from certain East Bengal players ends quickly.

Make fewer risky tackles

The reason why East Bengal have gotten so many players sent off so far is because their players are often a bit silly with their decision-making. Because of the overly aggressive nature of certain individuals and their obsession with controlling possession, they end up making unnecessary fouls. Bruzon doesn’t have to restrict his high-octane pressing style, but get his players to be more street-smart in terms of making tackles or fouls.

They need to be more clever in making tactical fouls and not aggressively lashing out at opposition players right in front of referees.

The players also need to improve their decision-making in when to commit to tackles and recognize other times when it might not be that harmful to let the opposition player move past them. Once East Bengal players can lower their repetitiveness in making rash challenges, they’ll be punished less often by referees and see fewer bookings.

Be careful in dealing with referees

In the modern age of football, referees are no longer fearful of being at the receiving end of bollocking or complaining from players. Even though the ISL referees have been criticized for their inconsistency for many years, the reality is that they still have a lot of control in making game-altering decisions.

That is why East Bengal players must be smarter in how they behave with referees and their interactions with them. In the game against Mohammedan, Naorem Mahesh Singh was sent off for lashing out at the official right in his face. That will automatically result in sending-offs in most of the matches.

East Bengal’s players have often been reprimanded for being disrespectful to referees and their aggression in front of officials just won’t help.

Bruzon has to get his players to be much calmer in interacting with officials and make a rule that only the captain or senior players can talk to the officials. By showing more respect towards the referees, East Bengal players can stop picking up silly bookings and lower the risk of red cards or suspensions.

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