East Bengal vs NorthEast United FC, Indian Super League 2024-2025, Today Match Prediction

East Bengal vs NorthEast United FC Match Prediction & Analysis

East Bengal, who had made it to the quarterfinals of the AFC tournament, has drawn a blank in the ISL so far, not winning a single game. They will be looking to redeem their status in the league under its new Spanish coach Oscar Bruzon, who was in charge during most of the games in the Challenge league. The team remained unbeaten in the tournament, picking up seven points off three games, the last of which came against the strong Lebanese Club Nejmeh SC. 

The 248th meeting between both Kolkata sides ended in lacklustre. Both East Bengal and Mohammedan SC didn’t show any desire or hunger in that game. “The most important thing is to find the balance in the team when we lose the ball. We are getting penalized in every game during our defensive transitions. We need to occupy the spaces well, both in attack and defence. This is the right energy, said the head coach of East Bengal. The team that they face in their upcoming game is in red hot form. They will only be allowed to compete if they bring their best foot forward. 

NorthEast United FC head coach Juan Pedro Benali said that his team is getting used to overcoming difficult situations and mentioned that they aim to maintain control over large chunks of the game. “We are learning. We are getting used to winning points from difficult situations. 

We hope that we don’t stop at the 65-70 minute mark, which is why we have scored so many goals late into the game. A football match is a collection of a lot of small games and we need to control most of them,” Benali said. NorthEast United’s game against Punjab was played at the speed of light with both teams on attack-mode. We hope that continues to make it more entertaining to neutrals and supporters alike.

Head to Head - Both teams have played each other 8 times. East Bengal has won 2 games. NorthEast United has won 4, with the rest ending in a draw. 

Standings - East Bengal sit at the bottom of the table with a solitary point. They’ve drawn 1 out of their previous 5 and have played a total of 7 games. They’re foes from the NorthEast are right into the title race with 15 points from 9 games.

TEAMS PREVIEW

East Bengal Preview

East Bengal have scored 15 goals against NorthEast United. The Spaniard was delighted with his team’s attitude in their previous encounter, 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. In doing so, his team picked up their first point of the season. 

Injuries - No reported injuries. 

East Bengal probable Starting Line Up - Gill (GK), Rakip, Ali, Maher, Lalchungnunga (DEF), Chakroborty, Crespo, Naorem, Talal, Kumar (MID), Diamantakos (FWD).

NorthEast United FC Preview

NorthEast has scored 14 goals against East Bengal. NorthEast United FC have recorded the best differential between expected goals (11.95) and actual goals scored (19) in ISL 2024-25 (+7.05 xG value). Their 19 strikes after eight games is five more than their previous-best tally after these many matches (14 in 2018-19). At the heart of all of this has been Alaaeddine Ajaraie, who has scored 11 goals and made four assists in eight appearances. The Highlanders stand at an unprecedented stage right now, since they have netted multiple goals in each of their previous ISL matches. 

Players to look out for 

Ajaraie and Punjab FC’s Luka Majcen have made a goal contribution once in every 42.5 minutes and 45.3 minutes respectively in ISL 2024-25, the most often and second most often among all players this season. Their consistency in delivering the goods upfront in a relentless manner is helping their teams find immediate solutions through some cohesive offensive endeavours.

Injury Report - Bemammer has been ruled out of this fixture. 

NorthEast Probable Starting Line Up - Singh (GK), S.D. Singh, Akhtar, Zabaco, Samte (DEF), Nickson, Mayakannan, Ajaraie, Albiach, Jithin (MID)Guillermo (FWD).

EAST BENGAL vs NORTHEAST UNITED FC
Winning Prediction

Two sets of teams from different sides of the table take each other on. East Bengal has been struggling and you’d expect that to continue especially coming out of the International break. NorthEast will be vying for top spot and this proves to be a golden opportunity to make that happen. 

North East United FC to Win!

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