-Rahul Giri from Bhubaneswar
East Bengal’s disastrous season ended with an early exit from the Super Cup, where the Red and Gold brigade had entered as the defending champions. On the other hand, Kerala Blasters, under the tutelage of their new head coach David Catala, showed how to turn things around after an ordinary ISL campaign—something East Bengal failed to do.
After finishing 9th in the ISL and getting knocked out from the Challenge League, fans had high hopes that East Bengal would make amends in the Super Cup to finish the season on a positive note. But they fell far short of the intensity needed to match Kerala Blasters.
“First of all, I take responsibility for what happened. Probably we need radical changes because we are targeting top finishes in all competitions in India. Clearly, this is not enough. Today, Kerala was better in all moments, all sectors, in all positions,” Bruzon lamented after the loss.
There was a stark difference between the foreigners of the two sides, which eventually decided the fate of the game. While Kerala’s trio—Noah Sadaoui, Adrian Luna, and Jesus Jimenez—kept East Bengal’s defense under constant pressure, the Red and Gold’s foreign recruits—Dimitrios Diamantakos and Raphael Messi Bouli—couldn’t even register a single shot on target. In midfield, Kerala’s Dusan Lagator quietly played a pivotal role as a defensive anchor, while East Bengal’s Saul Crespo couldn’t provide the much-needed boost, despite coming off the bench after the break.
“Their (Kerala) players were hungrier. They were winning all the second balls. They were closing down our players very fast. We were just watching the action and letting the game slip away. Again, very disappointed—first with the attitude, second with the performance, and third with the quality of our players,” said Bruzon.
After such a disappointing end to the season, East Bengal now have a massive task ahead to turn things around next season. A legacy club like East Bengal has not won a major silverware in over 12 years, barring the Super Cup triumph last year. As Bruzon pointed out, radical changes are needed to make amends.
“It’s not just a matter of attitude. I think we need radical changes because what is clear is that despite having good moments this season and solving some of the early problems, I am really disappointed and frustrated. We simply don’t have enough resources to compete with the top teams in India.”
Despite a few spirited performances this season, East Bengal failed to show consistency—managing to secure three consecutive wins only once. That inconsistency raises serious questions about the mentality, grit, and hunger of the players.
“I don’t want to blame anyone. This is not a moment to point fingers after a loss. But for me, it has been extremely difficult to instill a strong mentality in this team—the quality, the consistency to play game after game and truly challenge for victories. We have been inconsistent,” Bruzon admitted.
“I’m ashamed. The fans have backed us throughout. So it’s truly shameful, even to give a message to them. I’m tired of just saying that our fans are the life of the team, that they are our fuel. We need to give our all on the pitch, and when we don’t, the coach feels truly ashamed,” Bruzon concluded, expressing his heartfelt disappointment and apologizing to the fans.
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🚨Playing against Mohun Bagan will be tough, their players in the bench can start in any team. – Noah Sadoui.@kbfcxtra #KeralaBlasters #NoahSadaoui #SuperCup2025 pic.twitter.com/5krDkDf6xx
— RevSportz Global (@RevSportzGlobal) April 20, 2025