The memory of their nightmarish defeat to Mohun Bagan fresh in their minds, East Bengal will take on an upbeat Salgaocar in their round five I-League encounter at Yuba Bharati Krirangan in Salt Lake in Kolkata on Thursday.
The former champions now have 27 points, while relegation blues continue to haunt HASC, who have just seven points.
In another match in the Durand Cup football tournament, Mahindra United beat Army XI 2-0.
Pune FC rode on Mandjou Keita's conversion from the spot and a late strike from Subhash Singh to beat defending champions Salgaocar SC 2-0 in an I-League match.
Salgaocar rallied strongly after conceding an early goal but had to settle for a 1-1 draw in the National Football League.
Many label him the 'Greatest ever sprinter' -- even ahead of Usain Bolt. Benjamin Sinclair 'Ben' Johnson, who presently runs a sports academy in Canada came calling to Goa with two of his wards -- both of whom appeared for trials for I-League champions Salgaocar.
Dempo Sports Club and Salgaocar SC did everything except score in goalless but entertaining Goa derby in the 17th round I-League encounter at the Nehru Stadium, Fatorda, on Sunday.
Strong contenders East Bengal edged past a fighting Salgaocar Sports Club 3-2 in an exciting I-League match
Man of the match Roberto Silva's brilliant performance helped Dempo score a convincing 3-1 victory to halt title aspirant Salgaocar's dream run in the I-League, played at Nehru Stadium, in Margao, on Saturday.
Viva Kerala outclassed bottom-placed Goan club Salgaocar 3-1 in the fifth round of the ONGC I-League football.
An 86th minute goal by substitute Milagres Gonsalves helped Salgaocar hold Mumbai's Air India to a 1-1 draw in their second round match of the ONGC I-League, at the Nehru stadium, Fatorda, Goa, on Thursday.
Salgaocar Sports Club outclassed Viva Kerala 4-1 while Brazilian Eduardo da Silva Escobar scored four goals as JCT routed Assam Riffles 5-0 in the Durand Cup football tournament on Wednesday.
ONGC's stunning form at home continued as they beat former champions Salgaocar by a solitary goal in a Round 16 I-League match at Ambedkar Stadium in New Delhi on Saturday.
Salgaocar Sports Club would like to continue their winning streak when they take on upbeat Churchill Brothers Sports Club in the I-League clash at Nehru Stadium in Fatorda on Friday.
Churchill Brothers scored a comprehensive 5-0 win over Salgaocar in the play-off for third place in the 27th Federation Cup.
Four-time champions Dempo will be the underdogs when they kick-start their I-League campaign against defending champions Salgaocar at the Nehru Stadium in Fatorda, Margao, on Saturday.
East Bengal rode on defender Bello Rasaq's header to defeat Salgaocar 2-1 and jump to second place in the I-League football tournament in Barasat on Sunday.
East Bengal once again had luck on their side as they registered a 2-1 victory over an impressive Prayag United SC to set up a summit clash with Salgaocar in the 33rd Federation Cup football tournament, in Kolkata, on Monday.
A day ahead of their season opener against Prayag United, Salgaocar coach Karim Bencherifa speaks about his team's preparations, Indian football and a lot more.
Twice lucky on their road to the third successive Federation Cup football final, two-time defending champions East Bengal will take on I-League winners Salgaocar in the title clash of the 33rd edition of the tournament, in Kolkata on Thursday.
Reigning I-League champions Salgaocar rode on a late strike by Edeh Chidi to pip Shillong Lajong FC 1-0 and advance to the final of the 33rd Federation Cup at the floodlit Yuba Bharati Krirangan, in Kolkata, on Sunday.
Douhou Pierre scored in each half as Salgaocar registered a resounding 4-1 came-from-behind win over Mohun Bagan in the 36th Hero Federation Cup.
FC Goa co-owners Srinivas Dempo and Dattaraj Salgaocar withdrew their stakes from the franchise, on Friday, surprisingly soon after the Indian Super League Appeals Panel lifted the ban on the duo for "bringing disrepute" to the tournament following last year's final.
Bhaichung Bhutia will have a straight fight with former Mohun Bagan and East Bengal goalkeeper Kalyan Chaubey.
'This is a wonderful opportunity, but there is also a lot of work ahead of us and I am eager to get onto the training ground to start working with the players.'
Jaydev Mody, chairman of Delta Corp, has bought the 65 per cent stake jointly held by Dattaraj Salgaocar and Shrinivas Dempo in the FC Goa football team, which is part of the Indian Super League.
The controversial Canadian sprinter, who was stripped off his 100m gold medal during the Seoul Olympics, is in Goa for the past two days with two of his NRI students -- the Tumbar brothers, 18-year old Gurveer and his 17-year-old brother Karamveer. The two will be appearing for trials at reigning I-League champions Salgaocar.
Norma Godinho challenges sporting know-it-alls.
first-half strike by John Johnson helped Bengaluru FC beat United Sports Club by a solitary goal in their third round match of the I-League at the Bengaluru Football Stadium. The win propelled them to the top of the points table with seven points from three matches.
East Bengal began their I-League campaign in style, thrashing Shillong Lajong FC 4-0 in a one-sided match in Shillong on Wednesday. In Goa, Dempo fought back from a goal down to hold Salgaocar 1-1.
Dempo SC, on Wednesday, withdrew from the I-League for the upcoming season in protest against AIFF's proposed roadmap to restructure domestic football, dealing another body blow to the sport in India.
While this gesture is hardly the first display of the former Indian coach's philanthropic nature, yet he prefers not to speak about the various initiatives he undertakes despite being pressed for an answer. In fact, even this donation would have escaped the attention had it not been for a youngster who insisted on a photo being clicked with the former India international.
An injury-time goal by Yusif Yakubu helped Mumbai FC earn a draw against ONGC at the Ambedkar Stadium in New Delhi on Saturday.
Former India and Mohun Bagan footballer Manitombi Singh died aged only 39 at his native village near Imphal in Manipur on Sunday. Manitombi was suffering from a prolonged illness and breathed his last in the early hours of Sunday.
Defending champions Mohun Bagan easily defeated debutants Aizawl FC 3-1 to begin their campaign with a bang in the I-League football tournament opener at Vidyasagar Krirangan, Kolkata, on Saturday.
National football team coach Wim Koevermans has announced his squad of 21 players for India's two international friendlies which are scheduled to be held this month.
A meeting between representatives of I-League Professional Football Clubs Association and IMG-R, the commercial partners of All India Football Federation, did not take place on Wednesday with the company maintaining that it cannot meet an entity not recognised by the AIFF.
I-League and Federation Cup champions Salgaocar crashed out of the Durand Cup football tournament after suffering a 0-2 loss at the hands of Prayag United in New Delhi.
Hakim won the Santosh Trophy for Services in 1960 and continued to be a part of the squad till 1966. At club level, he played for City College Old Boys (Hyderabad) and Indian Air Force.
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