Bhubaneswar: After an underwhelming ISL campaign by Kerala Blasters and the East Bengal FC will start their fifth edition Kalinga Super Cup round-16 campaign here at Kalinga Stadium on Sunday.
Three of the four editions, since the first in 2018, were hosted at the Kalinga Stadium, and the only time the tournament was held outside Odisha at Kozhikoda 2023, the trophy was won by Odisha FC and brought to Bhubaneswar.
The last two years, where the tournament witnessed a group stage followed by semi-finals, as like 2018 and 2019 this season will purely be in a knockout.
Earlier, Churchill Brothers withdrew from the fifth season, by the virtue of that Mohun Bagan Super Giant entered the quarterfinals, total 15 teams battling it out for the trophy and a slot in next season's AFC Champions League 2.
East Bengal FC head coach Oscar Bruzon, reflecting on the club’s recent disappointments, emphasised the importance of the upcoming tournament.
“We have been working hard for the last three weeks, given how crucial this tournament is,” Bruzon said in the press conference ahead of the match against Kerala Blasters. “As you know, we are the defending champions. This competition gives us a chance to represent India in Asia, and that is a big motivation for us.”
Bruzon spoke of the team’s past season performance. “It’s no secret that this season has been turbulent. We couldn’t meet the expectations that were placed on us at the beginning of the campaign. We are professionals, and we want to show our supporters we are determined to turn things around.”
In the recently concluded ISL, Kerala Blasters finished eighth, a point and a place ahead of East Bengal in the league standings.
Kerala Blasters’ newly appointed head coach, David Catala said “Defensively, we’ve had some issues like our opponent East Bengal FC, but for me, it’s important to work across all departments. I want the team to be compact and strong in every phase of play. More importantly, I want to inject confidence in the players and to help them believe in themselves and play their natural games.”
