East Bengal FC’s head coach Carles Cuadrat was delighted after his team defeated NorthEast United on penalties in the Durand Cup semifinals by 5-3 after a 2-2 draw at the Vivekananda Yuba Bharati Krirangan in Kolkata on Tuesday.
The Highlanders took a 2-0 lead after goals from Michel Zabaco and Phalguni Singh. But the Gold and Red Brigade bounced back after Naorem Mahesh Singh and Nandhakumar Sekar found the back of the net at the fag end.
Cuadrat said this win shows that they have a never-say-die attitude and showered praise on his players for their astounding comeback.
“Football is a game of narrow margins. When we made it 2-1, we changed the system to a 3-5-2 to apply more pressure. We got the last free-kick and we equalised. I have mentioned earlier that we want to be a team difficult to beat. We have played five games till now – three narrow-margin wins and two draws,” East Bengal FC head coach, Carles Cuadrat said in the post-match press conference.
The Spaniard lauded the team for their impressive show and was happy with the belief the players showed despite having their backs against the wall.
“This was the first time we were trailing. But we showed that we have that ‘never-say-die’ attitude. I am happy to see the change in the dynamic. We have started to believe in ourselves. Nothing is done. Both the Durand Cup final and the ISL will be complicated. But I can see in the players the belief that they can turn things around. That was the real turning point,” the head coach added.
Cuadrat that the move to bring on Cleiton Silva worked wonders as they were able to get the equalizer that they needed.
“In these types of games, when you bring back a goal, it boosts the confidence. After we went 2-0 down, we tried something new – the combination of Cleiton Silva and Javier Siverio. Cleiton isn’t fully fit. But we took that risk. We finally got the equaliser,” stated Cuadrat.
East Bengal will face either FC Goa or Mohun Bagan Super Giant in the final of the Durand Cup.
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