ISL 2023-24 Final: Mohun Bagan eyes domestic treble in Shield finale rematch against Mumbai City FC

Mohun Bagan Super Giant will look to become the first Indian Super League (ISL) club to win the treble – the Durand Cup, League Shield and the ISL Championship – when it steps out to defend the ISL crown in its own den, at the Salt Lake Stadium on May 4.

At the other end stands Mumbai City, a club run by the City Football Group which has become the fiercest competitor against the Mariners this season.

The two have faced each other in decisive games for two different trophies so far, with Mohun Bagan coming out on top both times with the Mariners winning its maiden Shield at home last month.

The Mariners secured their spot in the Championship final after a comeback win against Odisha FC, recovering from a one-goal deficit to win 3-2 on aggregate. Mumbai, on the other hand, utterly dominated the second leg of the semifinal against FC Goa, winning 5-2 over two legs.

Mohun Bagan had a change of fortunes after it replaced head coach Juan Ferrando with veteran Antonio Lopez Habas, the most successful coach in the league’s history.

Under Habas, who won the ISL Championship twice with Atletico de Kolkata (later called ATK), Mohun Bagan lost just once in 12 games, eventually lifting the Shield.

Habas has used the attacking troika of Armando Sadiku, Jason Cummings and Dimitri Petratos judiciously, with Petratos flourishing as a No. 10, while Sadiku and Cummings – two entirely different types of strikers, one physically aggressive and the other tactical – found the net.

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That has seen Mohun Bagan score at a rate of over two goals per game (2.21) under his tutelage, with the trio scoring 29 of the side’s 50 goals this season.

However, the All India Football Federation (AIFF) suspended Sadiku for an additional game for breaching the AIFF Code of Conduct three days before the game.

Habas will thus be forced to use the Australian duo of Cummings and Petratos up front, with Anirudh Thapa or Sahal Abdul Samad – who scored the winner in the semifinal second leg – playing as a No. 10, similar to its plan against Odisha in the second leg of the semifinal.

Though Manvir Singh – Mohun Bagan’s joint-assist-leader, with seven from 22 games – did light training on Thursday (Matchday-2), Habas clarified that his whole squad, except the Albanian, was available.

Mumbai, on the other hand, has trodden the same path of changing head coaches mid-season when Petr Kratky took charge after Des Buckingham’s exit for Oxford United.

Unlike Mohun Bagan’s high-press from the word go, Mumbai has learnt to absorb pressure, before eventually taking the game to the opponent.

Against FC Goa in the semifinal first leg, when the contest almost looked done and dusted – Goa led Mumbai 2-0 for 89 minutes – Mumbai rode on rapid counterattacks to win the match 3-2.

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The Islanders have been clinical with their through balls and set-pieces, with Lallianzuala Chhangte and Vikram Partap Singh – the highest Indian goalscorers in the ISL this season – marauding down the flanks.

The duo scored four of Mumbai’s five goals in the semifinal (over two legs), with Chhangte becoming the first Indian to have 10 or more goals in consecutive seasons of the league.

Mumbai’s strength, however, lies in its defence – one that limited Goa to a single shot on target in the second leg of the semifinal.

It conceded the least number of goals (20) in the league phase, four fewer than Mohun Bagan, and has the second lowest xGA (expected goals conceded), just more than FC Goa.

Its goalkeeper Phurba Lachenpa, despite issues with positioning, tops the list of clean sheets (nine off 21 games) while captain Rahul Bheke, 35, proved his mettle against Goa, moving like a shadow around Noah Sadaoui.

Mumbai, however, will miss out on the suspended Yoell Van Nieff, its architect of transitions and set-piece attacks from the midfield in the second half of the season, and full-back Akash Mishra, who picked up an injury against FC Goa in the first leg of the semifinal.

Mohun Bagan’s loss in the first leg of the semifinal against Odisha FC had come when it switched off while leading – something that Mumbai City has a track record of punishing this season.

The Mariners had dethroned Mumbai City off the Shield this season and now have the chance to get bragging rights for another record the Islanders enjoy so far – winning the domestic double.

Beyond title defence, that will be something Mohun Bagan will look for in the battle of the East and West Coast in the City of Joy, with the match scheduled for a 7:30 PM kick-off.