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After topping their respective groups, East Bengal FC and Gokulam Kerala will square off in the second quarter-final of Durand Cup 2023 at the Salt Lake Stadium, Kolkata on Friday.
The Red and Gold Brigade are coming into the knockout stages after marching through the Group A matches with great resilience. Although they started with a slight hiccup after being held to a 2-2 draw by Bangladesh Army FT, Carles Cuadrat's men responded firmly with a hard-fought 1-0 victory over arch-rivals Mohun Bagan SG.
The Kolkata giants ended the group stage with another one-nil victory over newly-promoted ISL outfit Punjab FC. The emotions have been running high in the East Bengal camp after they returned to the knockout stages of a major competition in a while. The inclusion of Cleiton Silva and Jose Antonio Pardo will further boost their confidence ahead of the crucial quarter-final fixture.
Meanwhile, the Malabarians surprised a few when they topped a group consisting of ISL heavyweights like Kerala Blasters FC and Bengaluru FC. Their 4-3 victory against the fellow Kerala club is one that particularly stood out from the group-stage sojourn.
The winner of this clash will go on to face NorthEast United FC in the semi-finals.
East Bengal FC vs Gokulam Kerala: Predicted Lineups
East Bengal FC: Prabhsukhan Singh Gill, Nishu Kumar, Jordan Elsey, Lalchungnunga, Harmanjot Singh Khabra, Souvik Chakrabarti, Saul Crespo, Borja Herrera, Naorem Mahesh Singh, Javier Siverio, Nandhakumar Sekar.
Gokulam Kerala: Zothanmawia, Vikas Saini, Salam Singh, Aminou Bouba, Saurabh Meher, Basit Bhat, Abhijith K, Nili Perdomo, Shijin T, Alex Sanchez, Sreekuttan VS.
East Bengal FC vs Gokulam Kerala: Prediction
The Red and Gold Brigade have looked incredibly solid in the defensive phases in the past three matches. But most importantly, East Bengal have always seemed adventurous going forward without tucking into a shell.
Meanwhile, Gokulam's potent attack was on display in the clash against the Blasters along with their defensive frailty. The Kolkata giants will be eager to utilize those defensive lapses to move one step closer to the trophy.
Prediction: East Bengal FC 2-1 Gokulam Kerala
