A defining feature of football fans is their passion for the game. And in Kolkata, before a derby between East Bengal and Mohun Bagan, the passion and excitement of both fans and players tend to go through the roof.
In lieu of the ticket crunch for Sunday's match, a player who has been a regular participant in the derbies until recent history was even ready to trade profession and become a journalist for the 90 minutes so that he gets to watch the game live.
Angry Mohun Bagan fans had blocked traffic in front of the club tent due to unavailability of tickets. Later, in the day when 600 tickets were sent to the club by the Indian Football Association (IFA), fortune smiled on some but most had to disperse with a heavy heart.
"This is the first time since 2013 I will not be able to be there in the stands in a Kolkata derby. But nevertheless I will come to the stadium. I don't want to miss the celebrations after we win against them," said Saikat Kumar, a resident of a sub-division town called Kalna, which is just under 100 km from Kolkata.
A Red and Gold supporter group from North Bengal had alread booked the tickets online to avoid the rush. They had thought that they would start the night before the match and would redeem the tickets before the game. But according to IFA's latest notification online tickets could have been redeemed only until Saturday. After learning about the update, the bunch of fans had to reschedule their journey and had reached the city on Saturday itself.
"We will forget the hardship once the match starts. A triple hat-trick of the Calcutta Football League (CFL) crown and then they (Mohun Bagan fans) will go back to their caves until the I-League derby," said one of them.
These crusading fans infuse life in an otherwise stale football structure. The word passion seems inadequate to express the volcano of emotions that run through their veins before a derby.
At first the Mariners seemed a bit apprehensive of their team's chances, but swiftly they recovered from their trepidatioins and asserted that if East Bengal has a world cupper in their ranks they have an entire team to nullify his presence.
"In 2014 the German squad did not have any Messi or Ronaldo. It was not Messi who scored in the final but it was Mario Gotze. Germany played like a team. We will play like a team and take care of Johnny Acosta. Moreover, our Dicka-Henry partnership is working well in the attacking third. It will be his (Acosta's) first match. It will not be easy," pips in a 28-year old private sector employee who had bunked office to collect his match ticket.
Mohun Bagan coach Sankar Lal Chakraborty has already declared East Bengal to be the firm favourites.
"Bhowmick is one of the best coaches in India. His past success is a testimony to that. I have to be more careful. I admit that East Bengal is ahead of us. Right from the first XI to the coaching staff, they are a better unit. But we are not afraid of them, just paying them the due respect," said Chakraborty on the eve of the derby.
Whereas, at Leslie Claudius Sarani you can sense a positive pulse. The supporters are looking forward to nothing less than three points from tomorrow's match. When Lalram Chullova was about to leave after training a group of fans started chanting his name and the defender equally responded to the warmth by fulfilling their selfie-demands.
"Johnny Acosta had kept Neymar in his pocket during the world cup. Neymar even got frustrated after a point of time. Dicka and Henry will not be able to move even a muscle in tomorrow'smatch. In midfield Amna and Aidara will bulldoze. It's not about the win but the margin of the win," said an over-enthusiast fan while standing in the ticket queue.
After a few moments, a man in his late 40s who was standing right behind him tapped his shoulder and said," January-er derby bhuley gacho? (Have you forgotten the January derby?) We were firm favourites to win that match. Norde (Sony Norde) had left just a day before. Akram (Akram Moghrabi) had practiced just for three-four days. But after Amna (Al Amna) went out getting injured, the team fell like a pack of cards. Every derby is 50-50. After all these years I have learnt it the hard way."
Tomorrow's match is virtually a winner-takes-it-all encounter. Although there will be three fixtures in the kitty after tomorrow's game but it is likley that both teams will be able to bag full points from those matches. Mohun Bagan had missed out on the championship by a whisker in the previous season and the local league title have eluded them for the past eight years. On the other hand, East Bengal are knocking on the door of being crowned champions for the ninth straight time.
Individual battles will be fought with skill and steely egos. Players will go for bone crunching tackles. The fans will roar throughout the 90 minutes. Afterall it is the Kolkata derby; the biggest game in Indian club football.