East Bengal FC head coach Oscar Bruzon was delighted after a comprehensive 3-1 win against Punjab FC at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, Delhi in the ongoing Indian Super League on Saturday.
Dimitrios Diamantakos, Naorem Mahesh Singh, and Lalchungnunga scored for the Red and Gold Brigade while playing away. Ezequiel Vidal got one back for the Shers but it was not enough to create any late drama.
The tourists had 40% possession and took four shots on target. Bruzon was delighted with back-to-back wins and wants his team to continue the good form.
“We don’t want to accept the situation of being a bottom three. We want to keep escalating and climbing in the standings, and today is our first step to face the last three games of the ISL. The first one is next Wednesday against Hyderabad FC, and we are going to give maximum priority to this game,” Bruzon said in the post-match press conference.
Meanwhile, East Bengal FC will host FK Arkadag in the first leg of the AFC Challenge League quarter-final on March 5.
Speaking of it, the coach said, “The AFC Challenge League, the good thing is that we think that the team is getting settled, is getting consolidated, there are a lot of good things now on the pitch, so that is definitely going to be a boost for this demanding last part of the season.”
The gaffer showered praise on talismanic striker Diamantakos, who scored the opening goal for the visitors and set the tone.
“Before talking about Dimitrios (Diamantakos) in particular, I hope that we understand that when the team is settled, when they play with spirit, when they have this winning mentality, when we have this level of determination, when they enjoy being part of the system, when they have clear instructions on what to do and what to shape when to press up, how to find the triggers of pressure, and how to make the breaking runs. So that moment is when every player is slowly getting their best level of confidence,” Bruzon explained.
“I think that this is exactly what happened with Diamantakos today. There were a lot of openings and breaking moves on the left side. He was confident that the balls were going to come there on the sweetest spot around his movements. This is the reality. If he had scored one, he could have scored a second one. But he was much fresher, much more energetic, holding the ball, making breaking moves, helping all the players,” he continued.
East Bengal FC will take on Hyderabad at the Vivekananda Yuba Bharati Krirangan, Kolkata on Wednesday.
