Tony Grant claims East Bengal have proved that they are fighters

The Red & Gold Brigade's assistant coach also quipped that the team is a work in progress.

Riding on Matti Steinmann’s goal and Debjit Majumder’s heroics, SC East Bengal bagged a massive three points against Bengaluru FC on Saturday. With the victory against the Blues, the Red & Gold Brigade extended their unbeaten run to five games, although they still find themselves rooted at the ninth spot in the table. Following the match, assistant coach Tony Grant spoke about his views on the much-needed victory.

Work in progress

After a very poor start to the season, East Bengal are finally seeming to get all things done in the correct way. Just when the fans were losing hope, the team struck back and have now lost only one game in the last seven outings. Speaking on the development of the team, Tony Grant said he is happy that their hard work and patience is finally paying dividends.

“If you roll this all the way back to the start, we only had two weeks for pre-season. It took time, our players now understand. We brought a couple of new players in, Raju (Gaikwad) and Ankit (Mukherjee) are playing well. We are working,” he began.

“It has never been a problem. We were confident in our ideas and our vision. It just takes time, simple!” he added.

Thoughts on players

SC East Bengal played with an aggressive intent in the first half, which led to Matti Steinmann's winner in the 20th minute. Although leading at half-time, the Kolkata outfit switched to a defensive approach and focused on keeping the lead.

Addressing this aspect, Grant agreed that although one goal isn’t enough, he is pleased with the character shown by the players. “It's natural. In football one goal is not enough, normally. They put up a good fight. Our boys showed that we can play with the ball in the first half and we showed we can defend,” he expressed.

“Bengaluru are a good team, one of the biggest teams in the league. It's going to take us a while, we’ve shown we are fighters,” the tactician continued.

On Bright Enobakhare’s impact

The signing of Bright Enobakhare can easily be termed as the turning point for SC East Bengal this season. With his addition to the squad, he has revolutionized the team's attack. The assistant coach had kind words for the young Nigerian, who has scored twice for the team in the last three matches.

“Bright is an outstanding footballer. He is a really good human, he has got a big smile and he likes to play with the ball. He has given us all a lift,” Tony Grant expressed.

Thoughts on schedule

SC East Bengal won twice within the span of a week, playing three games in that period. According to the Englishman, the schedule did not help them much, but his team have put up a fight and have been successful.

“Well, to be honest, we came into the league very late. We have had three games in six days. The boys have shown how fit they are, how strong, how resilient and how much we can fight," he quipped.

"We know East Bengal are fighters. We have a manager, a coach, who are fighters. It's a good recipe for the future,” Tony Grant concluded.

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