Calcutta: After their six-goal extravaganza in the last match, East Bengal should be at the peak of their confidence for Wednesday's CFL Premier Division clash against Army XI, at the club ground. But one isn't sure if that is the case with Biswajit Bhattacharjee's side.

The reason for that is fitness worries. Quite a few of East Bengal's key players are fighting to be fit before the match.

The list is long. Captain Harmanjot Singh Khabra, striker Ranty Martins and defender Robert Lalthlamuana are recovering from bouts of fever. Goalkeeper Luis Barreto and midfielder Cavin Lobo are down with eye infections. Arnab Mondal has a knee injury, while South Korean star Do Dong Hyun has a groin strain.

Such is the situation that coach Bhattacharjee is unsure what his final XI will be on Wednesday. "It is difficult for me to speak on the status of my players on the eve of the match. I will have to wait for the match-day morning... Will check with the players and then decide. In any case, I have alternative plans ready," the coach said.

With Army XI being one of the stronger teams in the league, Bhattacharjee sounded a little cautious on Tuesday. "We can't take Army XI lightly... They pose a serious challenge. We will have to be alert," he said.

The Army team are currently the league leaders, with nine points from four matches. They have won three and lost the game versus Southern Samity. East Bengal, on the other hand, are placed third with seven points from three matches. To their credit, they are yet to concede a goal. While East Bengal were dealing with fitness issues, arch-rivals Mohun Bagan decided to recruit midfielder K. Asif. The 30-year-old had earlier played in the city for United SC. Last season, he was with Bharath FC.

Bagan's next match is against BNR, on Friday, and the team looked upbeat after their 5-2 win over Southern Samity in their last match.

Star striker Dudu oozed confidence. "There's no pressure on me... I believe there are many goal-scorers in our team. I just want my team to win." Bagan coach Sanjay Sen, however, has warned his players not to be over-dependent on the Nigerian. "We were creating openings, but were not being able to score... Dudu's inclusion has helped."