East Bengal FC head coach was proud of his team’s efforts as they secured a 0-0 draw against Kolkata rivals Mohammedan SC despite playing with nine men for almost an hour in an Indian Super League (ISL) match at the Salt Lake stadium in Kolkata on Saturday.

The Red and Gold brigade snapped their six-match losing streak in the ISL to open their account this season with a battling performance in the Kolkata derby.

Match Report: East Bengal FC 0-0 Mohammedan SC

The Spaniard was delighted with his team’s attitude as they didn’t down their tools despite being down to nine men.

“We played bravely. I had the option to play with two lines of four but I wanted to win the game. I wanted to win the game by playing long balls, winning the second balls and getting set-pieces in the opponent's half. We had a few chances. It was a moral victory for us,” Bruzon said during the post-match press conference.

“There are a lot of positives in this game. The fans identified the fight, spirit and character of the players and we have now gone four games in a row without losing,” he added.

The Spaniard revealed his message to the team during the half-time interval as he urged the players to stick together and defend as a unit.

“My message to the team at the break was to be compact in our two lines of four and three and block crosses and keep one striker up top so that we don't suffer. We defended like tigers, we tried to create chances as our objective even with nine men was to win the game,” he said.

Bruzon is overseeing a turnaround of fortunes with the Red and Gold brigade. Having successfully navigated through the group stages of the AFC Challenge League, he has helped the team pick up their first point of the season despite facing a lot of adversity during the game. The Spaniard revealed how he has been working on all fronts to ensure East Bengal FC get back to their best.

“I told the players that we can't lose any more games. We have lost all the games we had to in 2024. And my message to the players isn't just psychological or mental. We have to implement our tactics on the pitch. I feel we have a lot of strong points in our team.” he said.

The former Mumbai City FC assistant though was not pleased with Mahesh Naorem Singh who saw red during the match and urged the player to up his game when he returns from suspension.

“Mahesh is one of our important players. He is our captain. We need much better performances from him. His performances aren't to the level of the last few seasons,” he said.

“We have to work. In the international break we are going to try to put things in place but the Mahesh that everyone is expecting is not the Mahesh that we have at the moment,” he added.

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Mohammedan SCEast Bengal FC2024-2025