Reigning Durand Cup champions Mohun Bagan Super Giant will play their quarter-final match on August 23 at the JRD Tata Complex Stadium.

The Mariners, who qualified for the knockout stages as Group A leaders, have remained unbeaten in the tournament so far, winning both their matches, 1-0 against Downtown Heroes and 6-0 against Indian Air Force.

After the final group match on August 18 against arch-rivals East Bengal was abandoned a day before the match due to security reasons, each team was awarded one point. Mohun Bagan finished at the top on goal difference.

Sports star expects José Francisco Molina’s side to arrive in Jamshedpur on August 21 and are likely to face Punjab FC, who finished second in Group C, for a place in the semi-finals.

Jamshedpur is considered one of the possible options for hosting the remaining 2024 Durand Cup matches in Kolkata, but a final decision on this is still pending.

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According to the original schedule, two quarterfinals were to be held at the Salt Lake Stadium, while the JRD Tata Sports Complex in Jamshedpur and the SAI Stadium in Assam were to be given one each. Both the semifinals and the final were to be held at the Salt Lake.

It remains to be seen whether there will be further developments in the next few days.

Mohun Bagan are the most successful team in the Durand Cup, having won the title 17 times, including the last edition when they beat East Bengal 1-0 in Kolkata.

Since then, the club has undergone a number of coaching changes and Molina, who last led the now-defunct Atletico de Kolkata to the Indian Super League (ISL) trophy in 2016, will be looking to pick up where he left off in Indian football.

Mohun Bagan have also been very active in this summer transfer window, signing seven new players, including Australia’s all-time leading goalscorer Jamie Maclaren and former Indian Super League Golden Ball winner Greg Stewart.

However, it remains to be seen whether Maclaren and Dimitri Petratos, one of Mohun Bagan’s most reliable strikers over the past two seasons, can be registered by the club in time for the tournament.