"It is not going to be easy at all against East Bengal" - Mumbai City's Valpuia ahead of clash with the Torchbearers | ISL 2023-24

Mumbai City travel to Kolkata to take on East Bengal at the iconic Salt Lake Stadium in a match in the Indian Super League on Tuesday (February 13).

Both these teams come into this game on the back of defeats, with the hosts being thrashed by NorthEast United 2-3 in Guwahati while the Islanders were beaten by the same margin by Jamshedpur FC at home.

Mumbai City's Hmingthanmawia Ralte, better known by his nickname Valpuia, who has risen through the ranks to become one of the most trustworthy defenders in the league, knows that the East Bengal challenge will not be easy.

Speaking to Sportskeeda ahead of the game, Valpuia mentioned how important it is for his team to stay switched on at all times.

"It is not going to be easy at all against East Bengal. We have to prepare well and train as hard as we can. We need to make sure that our concentration does not go down and that we give our best whenever we get the opportunity to do so. Getting all three points is important for us," said Valpuia.

The centre-back also spoke on how important it was for the Islanders to make their supporters proud of their exploits on the field.

"We need to be serious and remain concentrated in training. Mentally, we have to be prepared and make sure that we perform well and make our supporters proud even though we will be playing away from home. We know that our fans will be cheering for us," he elaborated.

"We have to learn from our mistakes and keep going forward" - Valpuia

Valpuia in training with Mumbai City. (MCFC Media)

The conversation quite naturally veered towards the recently concluded Kalinga Super Cup, in which the Islanders got knocked out in the semifinals by eventual runners-up Odisha FC.

Valpuia started in all four games in the tournament and ensured that the absence of most first-team stars owing to national duty in the AFC Asian Cup was not felt much.

"I got a chance to play in all the matches in the Super Cup and as a team, we did really well. Unfortunately, we could not qualify for the final. In our previous match against Jamshedpur FC, we learnt a lot. We have to learn from our mistakes and keep going forward. That's the only way ahead," said Valpuia.

The Aizawl-born defender also praised new coach Petr Kratky and mentioned that the latter has created an excellent atmosphere in the Mumbai City dressing room.

"Coach Petr (Kratky) is a good man. He helps us a lot in the dressing room. The environment in our training ground is also phenomenal. It is all due to his farsightedness and willingness to help the team build for the rest of the season," he added.