New Delhi: After defeat in their AFC Champions League II qualifier at home, East Bengal will have to play their AFC Challenge League group stage matches in Bhutan where they will have to tackle hosts Paro FC, Lebanon’s Nejmeh SC and Bangladesh’s Bashundhara Kings.
The draw for the inaugural Challenge League was conducted at the Asian Football Confederation’s headquarters in Kuala Lumpur on Thursday where East Bengal had found themselves after a 2-3 defeat to Turkmenistan’s Altyn Asyr in Kolkata.
For the first edition of the Challenge League, 18 teams have been divided into five groups for the first round with three groups of four teams each and two groups of three teams.
The entire set of matches will be held between October 26 and November 2, with each group stage games being staged in a centralised location in a single round-robin format.
East Bengal are clubbed in Group A whose matches will be held at at the Changlimithang Stadium in Thimphu, Paro’s home ground.
We’ve been drawn alongside Paro FC (Host), Nejmeh SC and Bashundhara Kings in Group A of the 24/25 #ChallengeLeague! 🔴🟡#JoyEastBengal #EBFCInAsia pic.twitter.com/ajdlKvCTkZ
— East Bengal FC (@eastbengal_fc) August 22, 2024
AFC Cup semi-finalists in 2013, East Bengal have returned to the continental stage after nine years courtesy of their Kalinga Super Cup triumph last year.
As only the top-ranked team from Group A will advance to the double-legged quarter-finals, East Bengal is expected to battle for the top spot with 2005 AFC Cup runners-up Nejmeh.
In their previous meeting in group stage of 2010 AFC Cup, EB lost 0-3 away and 0-4 at home to Nejmeh. Bangladesh Premeir League champions Bashundhara Kings, who beat Mohun Bagan away in the last season’s AFC Cup, are also expected to be a handful as they will make their fifth successive appearance in continental club competitions.
Bhutan Premier League champions Paro FC beat Nepal’s Church Boys United in a qualifier and would make their debut in AFC club competition.
East Bengal will face Bhutan’s Paro FC, Lebanon’s Nejmeh SC and Bangladesh’s Bashundhara Kings in their AFC Challenge League group stage matches. Football Sports News: Latest Cricket News, Cricket Live Score, Sports Breaking News from Sports Today
