East Bengal's foray into the Indian Super League (ISL) will ensure that the spirit of Kolkata Derby will not be lost.
Early this year, arch-rivals Mohun Bagan and East Bengal faced off in what many considered to be the final Kolkata derby in a national league. I-League champions Mohun Bagan then confirmed their merger with ATK and thus announced their participation in the ISL as a new entity ATK Mohun Bagan.
But East Bengal looked like they would remain in the I-League and hence, there was no possibility of these two rivals battling each other in the top division.