In what might come as a massive blow to East Bengal’s chances of winning a title in Indian football, head coach Oscar Bruzon has confirmed that he will depart the club after the end of the ongoing season.
Bruzon has said that his departure is due to the absence of long-term planning at the club and clarity over its future, a claim that just brings shame to the century-old institution.
As things stand now, May 31 is all set to be Bruzon’s final day in charge of East Bengal.
“We have four matches remaining in the current ISL campaign. I will not be staying on after these four matches. May 31st will be my final day as the coach of East Bengal,” Bruzon said two days ahead of his team’s match against Mumbai City FC at the Mumbai Football Arena.
Despite
the development coming at a crucial juncture of the ISL season, East Bengal remain in contention for their maiden title.
East Bengal’s remaining games include clashes against Mumbai City (Tuesday), Punjab (May 11), arch-rivals Mohun Bagan Super Giant (May 17) and Inter Kashi. The date for their final game against Inter Kashi is yet to be confirmed.
The Red and Golds, having played nine games, sit three points behind leaders Jamshedpur (21 points from 11 games) and still have two games in hand, keeping their title hopes alive heading into the final stretch.
“The decision is purely personal. It isn’t related to economics. It isn’t related to the uncertainty of Indian football. It isn’t related to the club management, wanting or not wanting me to continue,” Bruzon said.
The Spaniard added a lack of long-term planning and future direction as the reasons for his departure.
“From February 2025, we started planning for this season. I was involved with the technical matters while Emami’s Vibhash Agarwal looked into the economics of it,” Bruzon said.
“We are in May. There is no long-term vision, there is no planning and there is no talk of keeping the key players in the team. There is nothing at all about the future of East Bengal,” Bruzon said.
