East Bengal FC head coach Stephen Constantine made it clear that he wants his team to win more matches and deliver in each of them ahead of their meeting against Odisha FC in the Hero Indian Super League (ISL) at the Kalinga Stadium, in Bhubaneshwar, on Friday.

East Bengal FC are placed eighth in the Hero ISL standings with 12 points from 11 games. They are seven points behind Odisha FC, who occupy the sixth spot. The Red & Golds will hope to accumulate as many points in their remaining nine matches and reach the Hero ISL playoffs for the first time in history.

Constantine mentioned that he wants his team to deliver in every game, not just the upcoming ones, which are crucial for them to reach the playoffs. He further stated that it was possible for his team to win four or five of the remaining nine matches.  

“It’s always time to deliver, it’s not about now or before. You have to deliver in every game, and we have not delivered in every game. We delivered more than what we did last season, but this season we won four games, and we want to win more games. We will try. It’s not the question of delivering now, but every game,” Constantine said at the pre-match press conference.

“I want to win every game I play. There isn’t a player in the team who doesn’t want to win every time he plays. But in order to do that, everything needs to be right. You need to do the right things at the right time, understand your job, and understand what is required. Make sure you do your job at set plays, make sure you’re covering.. we do these things on a daily basis. So I’m not going to sit there and say 27 points, let’s get 20. Is it possible? Yes. I think we can win four-five games from the nine remaining,” read more.

East Bengal FC have conceded 20 goals across 11 games and have managed to record just one clean sheet all season. However, Constantine was not concerned with his team’s defensive record and highlighted the importance of winning games.

“If I win 2-1, I don’t care. If we lose 1-3 then I do. We don’t deliberately try to concede goals, but this is the nature of the game. I would be more concerned if we hadn’t won four games. You’re not going to win 1-0 or 2-0 or 3-0 every game,” he explained. 

Goalkeeper Kamaljit Singh has missed East Bengal FC’s last two games due to an injury, with Suvam Sen starting in his place. Constantine said Singh could soon be available, apart from other players in their squad, who are still not fully fit.

“Kamaljit is working (his way) back (to full fitness). Hopefully, he could be ready in time. Charis (Kyriakou) again is not 100 percent ready, and there’s Jordan (O’Doherty). They are not concerns, but we are trying to be careful with them. We have nine games left, and we want everybody fit. This is the time of the season where there are injuries, and we have some knocks and niggles. But the biggest concern at the moment is Kamaljit,” he concluded.

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2022-2023East Bengal FC Match 69,Odisha FC vs East Bengal FC