East Bengal set a record of winning maximum number of six international matches in a row among Indian outfits by outplaying Malaysia's Negeri Sembilan 4-2 in a AFC Cup opening round tie at Kolkata on Wednesday.
The city giants, who won the ASEAN Cup last year, bettered their own mark of winning five consecutive international matches in the Asian Club Cup championship in Sri Lanka in 1985.
The current winning streak of the red and gold brigade included four victories in ASEAN Cup in Jakarta last year and the triumph over Singapore's Geylang United in the lung opener of the AFC Cup on February 10.
The club has a tradition of putting up a gritty display against foreign teams. It also holds the record of registering the biggest win among Indian clubs. East Bengal had recorded a 9-0 victory over Maldives' Valencia Club in the 1985 Asian Club Cup championship.
A lot of the credit for the current good showing by the club in international arena goes to coach Subhas Bhowmick, who surprisingly had almost decided to quit his job after achieving an all-win record in domestic circuit last season.