A new chapter will be added in the history of Indian Super League (ISL) when SC East Bengal take on ATK Mohun Bagan in what will be a continuation of their world-famous rivalry, albeit under new establishments and in new surroundings. (More Football News)
I-league winners Mohun Bagan merged with ISL winners ATK, thus forming a behemoth; while Bagan's eternal rivals East Bengal, after years of uncertainties finally found their saviours in Shree Cement, and now they are known as SC East Bengal.
Despite the recent changes, the souls of India's two living legacy clubs remain the same and they continue to yearn the same thing -- to play the most beautiful game, and if given a chance, entertain the fans in the Kolkata derby with everything they have. Now, two of the world's oldest football institutions have found a new stage to resume their century-old rivalry.
As Indian football claims to scale new heights in the form of Reliance-powered ISL, East Bengal and Mohun Bagan will give the league some sort of legitimacy. For, they bring a history which no other club or rivalry can challenge, in its richness or fierceness. And their first meeting in ISL will be a mouth-watering clash, as usual.
With that, here's everything you need to know about ISL's own Boro match:
Match: 8th match of ISL 2020-21 between SC East Bengal and ATK Mohun Bagan.
Date: November 27 (Friday), 2020.
Time: 7:30 PM IST
Venue: Tilak Maidan Stadium, Vasco, Goa.
TV Listing: Star Sports 1/HD, Star Sports 2/HD (English); Star Sports Hindi 1/HD, Star Sports 3, Star Gold 2 (Hindi), Asianet Plus, Asianet Movies (Malayalam); Star Sports Bangla; Star Sports Kannada; Star Sports Tamil; Star Sports Telugu and Star Sports Marathi.
Live Streaming: Online streaming will be available on Disney+ Hotstar VIP and JioTV.
All ISL 2020-21 matches will be shown live and can be streamed live in 82 territories across the world. Check worldwide coverage details HERE.
Head-to-head: Yes, this is a new start and the past records will not be counted in the ISL books. But, it will be futile not to have a look at the two clubs' rivalry. It's claimed that the first recorded Kolkata derby happened on August 8, 1921 in a Cooch Behar Cup match. Since then, they have met 369 times, including 327 competitive matches with East Bengal leading the head-to-head record with 129 wins, to Bagan's 119. In their last meeting, in the I-league, Bagan beat Bengal 2-1.
What happened so far?
In the season opener, ATK Mohun Bagan beat Kerala Blasters 1-0, thanks to a Roy Krishna strike. East Bengal are yet to play a match this season.
Key players:
East Bengal: Liverpool legend Robbie Fowler, who has been tasked to revive East Bengal's lost legacy, will rely on former Norwich City winger Anthony Pilkington and ex-Birmingham City star Jacques Maghoma. But the presence of a host homegrown talents, including seasoned Jeje Lalpekhlua, augur well for the Red and Gold Brigade.
Mohun Bagan: Antonio Habas will continue to rely on the attacking prowess of Roy Krishna and David Williams. Michael Soosairaj is out with an injury. Bagan have tried and tested squad, and Habas knows how to field a winning XI.
Likely XIs:
East Bengal: Debjit Majumder; Gurtej Singh, Daniel Fox, Scott Neville, Samad Mallick; Matti Steinmann, Mohammed Rafique, Eugeneson Lyngdoh, Anthony Pilkington, Jacques Maghoma; Jeje Lalpekhlua.
ATK Mohun Bagan: Arindam Bhattacharja; Pritam Kotal, Sandesh Jhingan, Tiri; Prabir Das, Pronay Halder, Javier Hernandez, Carl McHugh, Subhasish Bose; Roy Krishna and David Williams.
Squads:
SC East Bengal: Goalkeepers - Debjit Majumder, Rafique Ali, Mirshad Michu, Sankar Roy; Defenders - Daniel Fox, Scott Neville, Gurtej Singh, Narayan Das, Lalramchullova, Abhishek Ambekar, Rana Gharami, Samad Mallick, Mohamed Irshad, Ningthoukhongjam Rohen, Anil Chawan, Novin Gurung, Pritam Soraisam; Midfielders - Aaron Hammadi-Holloway, Anthony Pilkington, Matti Steinman, Jacques Maghoma, Eugeneson Lyngdoh, Bikash Jairu, Sehnaj Singh, Surchandra Chandam, Moirangthem Loken Meitei, Haobam Tomba, Milan Oinam, Wahengbam Luwang, Mohamed Rafique, Yumnam Gopi; Forwards - Jeje Lalpekhlua, Balwant Singh, CK Vineeth, Girik Khosla, Harmanpreet Singh.
Head coach - Robbie Fowler (England)
ATK Mohun Bagan FC: Goalkeepers - Arindam Bhattacharja, Dheeraj Moirangthem, Arsh Shaikh, Aryan Niraj Lamba, Avilash Paul; Defenders - Tiri, Sandesh Jhingan, Prabir Das, Pritam Kotal, Subhasish Bose, Sumit Rathi, Boris Thangjam; Midfielders - Edu Garcia, Javier Hernandez, Carl McHugh, Glan Martins, Michael Soosairaj, Jayesh Rane, Pronay Halder, Bradden Inman, Michael Regin, Sahil Sheikh, Ningombam Engson, Md. Fardin Ali Molla; Forwards - Roy Krishna, David Williams, Manvir Singh.
Head coach - Antonio Lopez Habas (Spain)
