2023–24 East Bengal FC season

The 2023–24 season is the 104th season of East Bengal Football Club and their fourth season in the Indian Super League, the top flight of Indian football. The Indian football season started in July and ended in April. During the season, East Bengal became runners-up in the Durand Cup and runners-up in the Calcutta Football League, had a ninth-place finish in the Indian Super League and became champions of the Super Cup, thus ensuring a place in the 2024–25 AFC Champions League 2 qualifiers.

Before the start of the season, East Bengal appointed Carles Cuadrat as the new head coach and finished with the highest ever points the club amassed in the Indian Super League in the four seasons.

Background
After the end of the 2022–23 season, the club parted ways with the head coach Stephen Constantine after poor results, and appointed former Indian Super League winner Carles Cuadrat as the new head coach for the team on a two-year contract. The club also roped in the services of Odisha winger Nandhakumar Sekar and Chennaiyin midfielder Edwin Sydney Vanspaul for the season. The club also roped in three Spaniards – Javier Siverio and Borja Herrera from Hyderabad, and Saúl Crespo from Odisha for the season. On 3 June, East Bengal announced the departure of eleven players, whose contract period ended and were not renewed, which included the five foreign players from last season apart from Cleiton Silva and Indian players – Jerry Lalrinzuala, Semboi Haokip, Suvam Sen, Himanshu Jangra, Amarjit Singh Kiyam and Naveen Kumar. East Bengal also roped in club legend Harmanjot Singh Khabra who had spent seven years with the club previously from 2009–2016 and also left back Mandar Rao Dessai for the season.

On 10 June, the club announced the signing of Nandhakumar Sekar on a three-year deal on a free transfer from Odisha. On 12 June, East Bengal announced the signing of Spanish midfielder Borja Herrera on a one-year contract in a free transfer. On 14 June, the club announced the signing of defender Nishu Kumar from Kerala Blasters on a one-year loan deal. On 17 June, the club announced the signing of Spanish duo Javier Siverio and Saúl Crespo on a one-year contract. On 19 June, the club announced the signings of three players – Edwin Sydney Vanspaul, Harmanjot Singh Khabra and Mandar Rao Dessai.

First-team squad

 * The below list contains the names and details of the first team squad for East Bengal.

Current technical staff
East Bengal appointed former Indian Super League winner Carles Cuadrat as the new head coach for the club on a two-year contract. The club also extended the contract with assistant coach Bino George till 2026, as he would also remain as the head coach of the reserves and developmental squad. The club also appointed former Indian Super League winner Dimas Delgado as the assistant coach on a two-year contract. The club also roped in three more Spaniards into the backroom – Goalkeeper coach Javier Pinillos, Physiotherapist Senen Alvarez and Sports Scientist Albert Martinez Bernat.

Preseason and friendlies
East Bengal started their preseason under Bino George and later under Carles Cuadrat in July. East Bengal played their first preseason friendly against Indian Navy on 30 July and won 2–1 with Lalchungnunga and Mandar Rao Dessai scoring for East Bengal in the match ahead of the Durand Cup. On 13 September, East Bengal faced Hyderabad in a preseason friendly game ahead of the Indian Super League and lost 0–1 at the East Bengal Ground.

Durand Cup
East Bengal participated in the 2023 Durand Cup and was grouped into Group A along with Mohun Bagan SG, Punjab, and Bangladesh Army and would play their group stage matches in Kolkata. On 6 August, East Bengal began their campaign against Bangladesh Army at the Salt Lake Stadium and managed a 2–2 draw. East Bengal took a 2–0 lead at halftime with Saúl Crespo and Javier Siverio scoring for the team but Nishu Kumar received a red card in the second half as Bangladesh Army scored two late goals to make it 2–2 and the points were shared. On 12 August, East Bengal faced their arch—rivals Mohun Bagan SG in the Kolkata Derby fixture at the Salt Lake Stadium and managed a 1–0 win courtesy of a solitary goal from Nandhakumar Sekar in the second half. On 16 August, East Bengal defeated Punjab 1–0 at the Kishore Bharati Krirangan to secure the top spot in the group and qualify for the quarterfinals. Javier Siverio scored the only goal of the match. On 25 August, East Bengal faced Gokulam Kerala at the Salt Lake Stadium in the quarterfinals and won 2–1. Jordan Elsey scored for East Bengal in the very first minute but Gokulam Kerala equalized in the second half courtesy of a goal from Aminou Bouba. However, East Bengal found the winner in the seventy-eighth minute when Nishu Kumar's cross deflected off Aminou Bouba into the net as East Bengal managed to hold onto the 2–1 lead to progress into the semifinals. On 29 August, East Bengal faced NorthEast United in the semifinals at the Salt Lake Stadium, where after the match ended 2–2, East Bengal managed to progress into the finals after winning the penalty shootout 5–3. East Bengal went 2–0 behind with goals from Míchel Zabaco and Konsam Phalguni Singh however, they rallied from behind with goals from Naorem Mahesh Singh and Nandhakumar Sekar to equalize the match to take it to the penalty shootout. East Bengal scored all five of their penalty kicks but Parthib Sundar Gogoi missed the penalty for NorthEast United as East Bengal won the shootout and progressed into the final for the first time since 2004. On 3 September, East Bengal faced Mohun Bagan SG in the final at the Salt Lake Stadium and suffered a 0–1 defeat to finish runners-up of the tournament. Dimitri Petratos scored the only goal in the final for Mohun Bagan SG. Nandhakumar Sekar was adjudged as the player of the tournament.

Summary
East Bengal began their Indian Super League campaign at home against Jamshedpur on 25 September at the Salt Lake Stadium with a goalless draw to share the points. On 30 September, East Bengal faced Hyderabad in their second match at the Salt lake Stadium and secured their first victory of the campaign. Hitesh Sharma put Hyderabad ahead but Cleiton Silva scored twice including a stoppage-time freekick winner to complete the comeback as East Bengal secured the victory.

On 4 October, East Bengal faced Bengaluru away at the Sree Kanteerava Stadium and suffered a 2–1 defeat. Naorem Mahesh Singh had put East Bengal ahead but Sunil Chhetri and Javi Hernández scored for Bengaluru as East Bengal suffered their first defeat of the campaign. On 21 October, East Bengal faced Goa at the Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneshwar due to administrative issues, and suffered a 2–1 defeat. Naorem Mahesh Singh had put East Bengal ahead however, Goa rallied from behind with two goals within a minute from Sandesh Jhingan and Víctor Rodríguez as East Bengal suffered consecutive defeats. On 4 November, East Bengal faced Kerala Blasters at the Salt Lake Stadium and suffered a 2&1 defeat. On 25 November, East Bengal faced Chennaiyin away at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium and drew 1–1, to end their three-match defeat streak.

On 4 December, East Bengal faced NorthEast United and recorded a 5–0 win. Borja Herrera opened the scoring for East Bengal and Cleiton Silva and Nandhakumar Sekar scored a brace each as East Bengal recorded their biggest-ever win since their inception in the Indian Super League. On 9th December, East Bengal faced Punjab and settled for a 0–0 draw. Next, on 16 December, East Bengal faced Mumbai City away at the Mumbai Football Arena and again settled for a 0–0 draw. On 22 December, East Bengal faced Odisha at home and once again settled for a 0–0 draw, the third consecutive goalless draw before ending the first leg of the league before the break for the Asian Cup.

Matches
The league fixtures were announced on 7 September 2023, with the season starting on 21 September.

Super Cup
East Bengal along with the other ten Indian Super League teams and four I-League teams shall participate in the Super Cup, which will be in Odisha in January 2024. East Bengal has been grouped in Group A, alongside Indian Super League sides – Mohun Bagan SG, Hyderabad and an I-League side Sreenidhi Deccan. On 9th January, East Bengal faced Hyderabad in the opening fixture of the campaign and managed a 3–2 victory with Cleiton Silva scoring a brace and Saúl Crespo scoring the third. On 14 January, East Bengal faced Sreenidhi Deccan and won 2–1 with goals from Hijazi Maher and Javier Siverio. On 19th January, East Bengal faced their arch-rivals Mohun Bagan Super Giants in the Kolkata Derby fixture in a virtual quarter-final tie that would decide the group champions and who would progress into the semi-finals and East Bengal won 3–1 with captain Cleiton Silva scoring a brace while Nandhakumar Sekar scoring the other, as East Bengal won all three matches in the group to qualify for the semi-final. On 24 January, East Bengal faced Group B winners Jamshedpur in the semi-finals and won 2–0 with goals from Hijazi Maher and Javier Siverio as they entered the final for the second time, after 2018. On 28 January, East Bengal faced the defending champions Odisha in the final at their home ground Kalinga Stadium. Odisha took the lead in the first half as Diego Mauricio scored however, East Bengal came back with goals from Nandhakumar Sekar and Saúl Crespo to lead 2–1 however, East Bengal conceded a penalty in the last second of the match and Ahmed Jahouh scored the equalizer from the spot to take the game into extra time. However, captain Cleiton Silva scored the winner in the 110th minute as East Bengal secured a 3–2 victory to become the champions and lift a major trophy after twelve years.

Summary
East Bengal participated in the 2023 Calcutta Premier Division and was drawn into group B for the first phase of the tournament where twenty-six teams were divided into two groups of thirteen teams each. East Bengal would be mainly fielding their Reserve squad for the tournament with coach Bino George taking charge of the team. In the opening match on 13 July, East Bengal faced ASOS Raibow at the Kishore Bharati Krirangan and were held onto a goalless draw to start their campaign. On 17 July, East Bengal faced West Bengal Police and achieved their first win of the season as they won 4–2 at the Bankimanjali Stadium in Naihati. Bunando Singh, Sarthak Golui, Dip Saha and Abhishek Kunjam scored for East Bengal. On 20 July, East Bengal faced Kidderpore and won 2–0. Tuhin Das and Shyamal Besra scored for East Bengal as they latched up consecutive wins. On 24 July, East Bengal faced BSS at Naihati and were held to a 1–1 draw. East Bengal went down to 10 men after Tuhin Das was given a straight red card in the first half, however, it was East Bengal who took the lead in the ninetieth minute through a direct freekick strike from Dip Saha. BSS scored the equalizer in the seventh minute of injury time as East Bengal had a settle for a draw. On 27 July East Bengal faced Eastern Railway at the East Bengal Ground and won 5–1. Aman C. K. scored a brace while Avishek Kunjam, Vanlalpeka Guite, and Razibul Mistry scored one each as East Bengal registered their third win of the campaign. On 31 July, East Bengal faced Wari at the East Bengal Ground and won 5–0. Avishek Kunjam scored a brace while Dip Saha, Tanmay Das and Aman C. K. scored one each as East Bengal registered their fourth win of the campaign. On 3 August, East Bengal faced Bhawanipore and drew 1–1, with Dip Saha scoring for East Bengal. On 9 August, East Bengal defeated Railway FC 2–0 with goals from Aman C. K. and Nishu Kumar to earn their fifth win of the campaign. On 14 August, East Bengal defeated Police AC 2–1 with goals from Avishek Kunjam and P. V. Vishnu to grab their sixth win of the campaign. On 19 August, East Bengal defeated Aryan 2–0 with goals from Jesin TK and Aman C. K. as they grabbed their seventh win of the campaign. On 22 August, East Bengal defeated Calcutta Customs 1–0 with a goal from Mahitosh Roy as they grabbed their eighth victory of the campaign and secured a place in the Super–six of the Calcutta League. on 7 September, East Bengal faced George Telegraph in the last match of the first phase and won 4–0 to finish top of the group with 30 points and entered into the Super–six round. Jesin TK scored a hattrick and P. V. Vishnu scored the other goal for East Bengal.

On 20 September, East Bengal faced Mohammedan Sporting in the first match of the Super–six round and suffered a 2–1 defeat. David Lalhlansanga scored a brace for Mohammedan while Nandhakumar Sekar reduced the margin for East Bengal. On 26 September, East Bengal faced Kidderpore and recorded their fifth biggest win ever after winning 10–1 at the East Bengal Ground. P. V. Vishnu scored four, Mahitosh Ray scored thrice, V. P. Suhair scored a brace while Jesin TK scored the other for East Bengal. On 30 October, East Bengal faced Diamond Harbour and won 4–1. Jesin TK, Mahitosh Ray, Tuhin Das and Abhishek Kunjam scored for East Bengal while Rahul Paswan scored for Diamond Harbour. On 18 November, Bhawanipore informed that they can not field a team hence a walkover win was awarded to East Bengal and on 30 November, East Bengal were to face Mohun Bagan SG at the Bankimanjali Stadium however, Mohun Bagan SG did not field a team and East Bengal was awarded a walkover win, as they finished runners-up in the league.

Appearances

 * Players with no appearances are not included in the list.