'We are still far away from smelling the Trophy': East Bengal coach Carles Cuadrat after Derby Win

East Bengal coach Carles Cuadrat is happy that his team is fighting for the trophies after qualifying for the semifinal of the Kalinga Super Cup on Friday, but says the team is still far away from 'smelling the trophy'.

East Bengal steamrolled arch-rivals Mohun Bagan 3-1 to advance to the last four of the tournament. It was Cleiton Silva with a brace for the Red and Gold Brigade, while Nandha Sekhar scored a goal as well.

And the East Bengal coach believes their progress in the recent season is something massively positive as they are fighting for titles again.

"We were struggling, not competing well as a club. But now we are in the semifinal of the Kalinga Super Cup, which is a positive thing. We have Jamshedpur in the semifinal and that will be an important match," Cuadrat said in the post-match press conference.

The East Bengal coach also praised the work rate of the players and said the two-goal cushion was important. He was also ecstatic with the performance of Cleiton Silva, who now has 4 goals in three Super Cup matches.

"We have been playing really good football in transitions and counter attacks. We are creating multiple chances. I think the supporters will be satisfied with how the things are going," he added.

The Spaniard says the equalizer in the first half was pretty important. Hector Yuste gave Mohun Bagan the lead, but Cleiton scored within six minutes of that to equalize things for the Red and Gold Brigade.

East Bengal also didn't concede a lot of chances in the match. Apart from the goal and the missed penalty, it was pretty much a cakewalk for the East Bengal defense. And Cuadrat was quite buoyant about that.

"When you concede two goals, it is very difficult. You have to be strong and I am happy the way the players are playing. They are compact and I can see players are understanding their roles, which is quite pleasing," Cuadrat continued.

East Bengal lost the Durand Cup Final against Mohun Bagan, and when asked if it was revenge for that, the Spaniard denied it. He says it was not revenge at all as it is different competition altogether. The Spanish coach also thinks they are far away from winning the Super Cup.

"We are far away from smelling the trophy. We are 90 minutes away from the Final and 90 more minutes away from the championship. We will have to do well in those matches," Cuadrat concluded.

The Torch Bearers will extend their stay in Bhubaneswar as the crucial semifinal comes up against Jamshedpur FC on Wednesday. They also become the first team from Kolkata to reach the knockout stages of the Kalinga Super Cup, and would be aiming to leave the Odisha capital with the silverware.