"As a Bengali boy, always look forward to derby"- Pritam Kotal ready for clash with East Bengal

ATK Mohun Bagan will face arch-rivals East Bengal on 29th October, Saturday at the Yuba Bharati Krirangan, Kolkata. This will be the season's second derby, the first being the 1-0 win for the Mariners in the 2022 Durand Cup.

Skipper Pritam Kotal is quite confident of his team's preparations for the Kolkata derby, especially coming off that brilliant 5-2 win over Kerala Blasters, which included a Dimitri Petratos hattrick.

"Getting three points in the last match will obviously help as the team's morale is high. We feel we are ready for the derby now," Kotal said.

Having been a Mariner for the majority of his career so far, Kotal believes that the derby is a different experience altogether. "The derby is special for each team member, but for me it's always special because as a Bengali boy, I always look forward to playing the match. There's no usual preparations, just the usual training," the defender explained.

While he is confident of his team, he cautions everyone about the unpredictable nature of the derby. "The derby is a different game, not easy. It's always a 50/50 match but we'll give our best."

"They are a very good team, with a good striker and youngsters like Jerry, who's a really good left-back," Pritam praised East Bengal.

Both Kolkata sides will be coming off convincing victories, their first in the season, and both head coaches Juan Ferrando and Stephen Constantine will have their eyes on the three points as well as the bragging rights of this age-old rivalry.