Mohun Bagan triumphs over Indian Air Force FT in their 2nd match in Durand Cup | Post-Match Review and Analysis | MBFT

byAnik Nandi -

Mohun Bagan triumphs over Indian Air Force FT in their 2nd match in Durand Cup | Post-Match Review and Analysis



After winning the opening match against Downtown Heroes, Mohun Bagan faced the football team of the Indian Air Forces in their 2nd Group Stage game of the Durand Cup 2024.

After 10 days of training under the new Spanish Coach, Jose Francisco Molina, apart from the match being viewed by Dimitri Petratos and Jamie Maclaren from the stands, the rest of the senior team made themselves present in the squad for the first time in the season 2024-25. 
 

Bagan's First Starting XI of 24/25

Courtesy: Durand Cup Media

The coach made some massive changes to the lineup but retained the young striker from Kashmir, Suhail Bhat, to play the lead striker’s role in the 3-4-1-2 formation. The goalkeeper, Vishal Kaith, was back to perform heroic saves and keep a clean sheet. 

The captain, Subhasish Bose, played the left-center-back whereas Deepak Tangri was shifted on a right-center-back position to fill the void, in the absence of Sumit Rathi and Dippendu Biswas. Tom Aldred made the starting lineup as the Centre Back and was later replaced at half time to make way for Spanish defender, Alberto Rodriguez. 

The Indian National Team Superstar, Apuia made his debut in the Green and Maroon colours yesterday. The Central Midfield was in control of the new signing from Mumbai City FC, Apuia Ralte and Abhishek Suryavanshi. 

Whereas, Liston Colaco and Manvir Singh took care of the wings in the attacking third. Up front, Sahal Abdul Samad, along with Jason Cummings stood in support of Suhail Bhat, a lethal 3- pronged attack combination by the gaffer.

On the other side, Indian Air Force FT made some changes in the starting lineup. Sankit was replaced by Umar Farooq in the Centre-Back position and Samuel KV replaced Biswajit Halder in the midfield. 

In the attack, Saurav Sadhukhan was replaced by 20-year-old from Punjab, Aman Khan, to play the main striker role. Their coach, Priya Darshan, deployed a similar 4-4-2 formation with an aim to score goals if the opportunity presents itself and deny the Mariners 3 points in the Group Stage of the Durand Cup.

The Arrival of Molina-Ball

As the match started, the Green and Maroon colours stifled the IAFFT’s defense with high pressing and exerted dominance by showing off the new colours of total football introduced by the gaffer. From the starting whistle, Mohun Bagan kept possession while playing passes and keeping the ball in the attacking third. 

The wings were crucial in the development of the attacks, as at 3’, Liston nutmegged Ashok and breezed past Umar to put up a great cross, yet inches wide from the attempted header of Suhail Bhat, the first attempt of Mohun Bagan at goal. 

However, the attacking style proved successful a minute later, when the Mariners opened the scoring book as Sahal’s through ball made it easy for Cummings to put it in the back of the net. His first celebration of the Joker Face in front of the fans surely left a lasting impression of many more to come in this season.

Mohun Bagan SG 1-0 Indian Air Force FT | Goal by Jason Cummings (4’)


Even though Mohun Bagan was in the lead, they refused to slow down and kept on dominating the game. The ball barely crossed the half-way line and the Mariners were enjoying the new style of total football. From slick one-two’s to wing-to-wing long ball passes, it was a sight to behold. 

At 9’, Liston drew a foul from Danish 35 metres away from goal. His freekick reached the head of Suhail this time, whose thumping header ricocheted off the hands of the goalkeeper, but Tom Aldred was on the receiving end who comfortably scored his first goal for Mohun Bagan.

Mohun Bagan SG 2-0 Indian Air Force FT | Goal by Tom Aldred (9’)

With 76%-24% possession ratio in the first quarter, Mohun Bagan continued the similar style of play as the IAFFT struggled to defend against the constant barrage of attacks. Trying to contain Liston, a rash challenge from Ashok Kumar earned him the first yellow of the game. 

Man-marking proved fruitless as the players often changed positions instead of playing in traditional fixed roles. Jason Cummings often dropped down to the midfield to distribute the ball and the wings made runs to widen the defense and make way for through passes. 

A similar play at 37’ earned Sahal his 2nd assist as he provided a through pass in the box for Liston to slot home his first goal of the season. The fans cheered, as his dominant performance in the game earned him a goal of his own.

Mohun Bagan SG 3-0 Indian Air Force FT | Goal by Liston Colaco (37’)


Mohun Bagan’s first scare came at 45+1’ as Mohd Aqib’s cross reached Aman in the box who chested it for Puneet to take a shot, but a timely body shielding by Tom allowed Vishal to collect the ball, for the first time in the match.

The half time ended with the scoreline 3-0 in the favour of Mohun Bagan Super Giant, who took 16 shots, as compared to zero by the opposition.

Half Time: Mohun Bagan SG 3-0 Indian Air Force FT
 

Statement Victory Before Derby

In the second half, Priya Darshan’s change in strategy allowed IAFFT to gain possession, but it weakened the defense further, which was exploited in the 47th minute by midfield maestro, Sahal, who once again made a through pass, this time to Suhail, who was unfortunately unable to find the back of the net. 

Despite his misses, his smooth transition from youth team to the senior team looked promising. His timely runs to beat the offside trap set up by high defense and high pressing of opponent’s defense proved crucial to maintain dominance throughout the game. 

At 64’, Sahal gave an outstanding through ball to Liston Colaco which beat 5 players of IAFFT, but his shot was denied by the goalkeeper on the 1-on-1 attempt.


However, seconds later, Liston passed the ball to super-sub, Anirudh Thapa, who took a thumping shot from the outside of his boot which grazed the post as the crowd roared in jubilation. The screamer was acknowledged from the stands who cheered for him for scoring his first goal of the season.

Mohun Bagan SG 4-0 Indian Air Force FT | Goal by Anirudh Thapa (64’)

At 69’, Liston made way for the substitution of Ashique Karuniyan, who made a comeback after 9 months due to an ACL injury he suffered while playing in India vs Iraq match in King’s Cup, Thailand last year. 

Mohun Bagan continued to play aggressive football which resulted in another goal at 75’ scored by Jason Cummings with quick passes from Sahal and Manvir penetrating the defense and letting the Aussie push the ball past the goalkeeper into the far side of the net.

Mohun Bagan SG 5-0 Indian Air Force FT | Goal by Jason Cummings (75’)


Greg Stewart replaced Manvir Singh soon after and Suhail Bhat got replaced by Asish Rai to add depth to the right wing. The Mariners kept on pushing to score more against IAFFT. At 81’, Sahal’s attempt at goal was inches wide as it hit the post. 

At 90+1’, Mohun Bagan showed no sign of slowing its aggression. A beautiful one-two between Cummings and Stewart, left the goalkeeper no time to react as the latter scoring by nutmegging a defender, earning the Scottish midfielder his first goal on his debut match in the Green and Maroon Colours.

Mohun Bagan SG 6-0 Indian Air Force FT | Goal by Greg Stewart (90+1’)

The match ended with the scoreline 6-0 in favour of Mariners.

Full Time: Mohun Bagan SG 6-0 Indian Air Force FT

Key Player Analysis

Courtesy: Durand Cup Media

Sahal Abdul Samad

Sahal created 6 chances, out of which he got 2 assists. He was the playmaker in the attacking third. His endless supply of through balls and accurate passes helped Mohun Bagan maintain possession. Apart from passing, he pressed the defense with aggression and forced them to commit mistakes on which he was quick to capitalize.

Jason Cummings

After scoring the deciding goal in the match vs Mumbai City FC and making Mohun Bagan ISL Shield Champions, he has returned on a banger. The 2nd highest ISL 2023-24 scorer was quick on his feet. 

His dynamic positioning and pin-point passes helped the team maintain the aggression throughout the game. His early goal gave the go-ahead to keep the pressure on the IAFFT defenders and let Mohun Bagan play a highline defense. 

His 2nd goal was a cherry on the cake that put Mohun Bagan at the top of Group A of the Durand Cup. Last but not the least, his one-two with No. 10 Greg Stewart at the last minutes of the game awarded him an assist too. The exceptional performance earning the Aussie the Man of The Match award. 

Liston Colaco

His swift movement on the left wing combined with tiki-taka passing with teammates and sudden accelerated runs to through balls proved too hot to handle for the IAFFT defenders. His body feints and cut-insides were impressive enough to attract fouls, which gave Mohun Bagan freekicks from crucial positions. He scored a goal and provided an assist to Anirudh Thapa.
 

The Upcoming Objective


Mohun Bagan’s utter domination and aggressive style of playing made it the scoreline a gift on the gaffer’s birthday of 6-0 one-sided victory triumph over the Indian Air Force FT. His tactics and strategies look promising, with significant improvement of the team from the last match scoreline of just 1-0 against Downtown Heroes. 

The midfield and attacking side proved their prowess on the field. The defense was hardly tested as AIFFT was unable to keep possession for long in the heat of high pressing from the Mariner’s 3 pronged attack and the two wings. A bold statement from the first match result under the gaffer: Molina-ball is here to stay. 

The players and coaching staff will have plenty of time to train and improve in the next 10 days before they face derby opponents, EEBFC, on 18th August, in their next and final match of the group stage of the Durand Cup, 2024.
 
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