Carles Cuadrat was a disappointed man back in August 2018. He was at the receiving end of Altyn Asyr FC’s superior football that had prevailed over his then-team Bengaluru FC in both legs of the AFC Cup Inter-Zone semi-final.

Six years later, will the Spaniard, currently at the helm of Emami East Bengal, be able to spur his players on to give it back to the Turkmenistan-based side this time?

In Wednesday’s AFC Champions League (ACL) II preliminary stage playoff clash, East Bengal, given their current performances, should pose a tough challenge to Altyn Asyr, even though the visitors have been consistent recently in the AFC tournaments.

A win at the Salt Lake Stadium on Wednesday will help East Bengal find a place in the main round of the competition and join arch-rivals Mohun Bagan Super Giant. For head coach Cuadrat though, the “never-say-die” attitude of his wards will be a big factor.

“We’ll fight for the game, but we need the crowd helping us at home because we’re the underdogs. It has been a long time since our team featured in an AFC competition. We know it’ll be a difficult test for us as we play against a team that’s showing they deserve to be in an AFC competition year after year,” Cuadrat said on Tuesday, the eve of the game.

“At the same time, it’ll be a good test for our guys to prove that they also belong to that level and represent the country in a top competition like ACL II. Don’t forget, East Bengal will always have a never-say-die attitude and we’ll take advantage of the home support,” he emphasised.

Wednesday’s contest aside, East Bengal have another big game at hand when they lock horns with Mohun Bagan in the Durand Cup Derby on Sunday. They prefer focusing on the positives though.

“When you have two difficult games lined up, it means you’re playing for big things. So, that’s great for us. We’ll try to have the players in their best condition to manage both games, while we also have to be realistic,” Cuadrat said.

East Bengal know they will not be able to be at full strength on Wednesday, especially with strikers Dimitrios Diamantakos and Cleiton Silva being doubtful starters as they both carry injuries.

Defensive midfielder Jeakson Singh, however, features in Cuadrat’s list.

Frenchman Madih Talal, usually an attacking midfielder, may operate as a roving forward.

Altyn Asyr, on the other hand, came off a mid-season break, having played a few friendlies. Cuadrat’s counterpart Yazguly Hojageldiyev has full faith in his team’s homegrown talent, with the visitors not having any overseas recruits in their line-up.