5 Things We Learnt from Mohun Bagan's Win against PFC

bySagnik Chakraborty -

Mohun Bagan completed a comeback to secure a thrilling 3–2 win over Punjab FC, ending their three match winless run. But does this result really bring relief for the Mariners? While it restores some momentum, the game was largely Punjab's to lose.



Here are 5 KEY TAKEAWAYS from a match where fortune tilted heavily in Bagan's favour.

1. Fragile at the Back:

In a 13 game league, margins are brutal. Mohun Bagan started the campaign with the right intent– attacking football built on high press and strong chance creation. But dropping 7 points across three games should force a reset, especially in maintaining a compact defensive shape.

Bagan gave away too many clear-cut chances against Punjab– high xG (1.48, while Mohun Bagan had an xG of 0.40) conceded, poor rest defense, and visible gaps between defensive channels. When you rely purely on outscoring, you won't score five goals every day. Titles don't follow volume of chances alone, but rather they follow control.

In-box awareness remains the bigger concern. Both Tom Aldred and Alberto are getting drawn toward the wing from which the cross is delivered, leaving the central zone exposed. On the first goal, even accounting for Alberto being fouled by Effiong, the structural issue persists as both defenders shift toward the same side instead of splitting responsibilities. In this instance, the cross came from the flank being pressed by Manvir and there were both Abhishek and Aldred in the space between. Ideally, Aldred should step higher and stay closer to Effiong. One defender must engage the ball side threat, while the other protects the central channel and stays connected to the striker making the run to meet the ball. This pattern was visible against JFC as well. It was not on Subhasish Bose, the left back; this was about enabling zone marking.

Pic Credits to FanCode.
Manvir, Tekcham and Tom rush towards Uvais who has the ball. Tekcham reaches in time to stop Uvais from taking a shot. Tom centres himself between Uvais and Goal instead of man-marking Effiong. Effiong goes towards first post and Alberto man-marks Effiong instead of Dani, while Subhasish man-marks Suhail. Dani gets in the space near the 2nd post in the box, and he scores the first goal for PFC.



Similarly, Mehtab was leaving too much space for the striker. The distance between defender and attacker inside the box cannot be passive. You have to stay touch tight, apply physical pressure, and deny first contact. Inside the penalty box, the priority is simple: don't allow a free touch. Force errors before the shot even becomes an option.

It was Punjab's game to lose. Effiong and Leon Augustine both failed to convert sitters in either half, while Vishal pulled off a blinder save and Aldred's blocks kept Bagan in the game. Subhasish Bose had a mixed game: decent in attacks, shaky in defense. Abhishek, too, was average against PFC. The defensive lapses, though, were simply unacceptable– too basic, too frequent– and a hard pill to swallow for both the fans and the coach.

Post Credits to @RGPunjabFC.


2. No Apuia, No Control:

Against Punjab FC, Mohun Bagan managed to score three, but the midfield control was inconsistent in different phases of the game. This match underlined exactly what Apuia brings to a side. His absence was felt structurally. Deepak Tangri, who had his 99th appearance for Mohun Bagan's senior team, had one of his worst outings in recent past. Tangri is typically valued as a destructive midfielder; someone who screens the backline, disrupts opponent’s progressions down the middle, and stabilizes transitions. But against Punjab, he struggled to impose himself in any of these phases. His distribution lacked control and intent; frequent 50-50 and casual passes broke Bagan's rhythm and led to unnecessary possession losses. A pass accuracy of around 76% is below the expected threshold for a CDM in a possession heavy setup.

While his tackling timing was largely intact, his press resistance was a major concern. Under pressure, he failed to retain or recycle possession cleanly, which directly impacted Bagan's ability to build through midfield. More importantly, his positional discipline and recovery intensity were inconsistent. There were multiple instances where he was trailing the play, leaving gaps in front of the defensive line.

In contrast to Apuia's composure, spatial awareness, and ability to control tempo, Tangri couldn't replicate the role either in structure or execution. "There were a lot of free balls, and the opponent played many passes, and thus, dominated the game. One of our best players [Apuia] in our team was not okay", said Sergio Lobera during the post match conference.

Thapa, on the other hand, with a 70 % passing accuracy, struggled to dictate tempo or provide clean progression towards the thirds. His positioning between the lines lacked sharpness, which reduced his involvement in key passing sequences and final third combinations. Fewer penetrative passes, limited control under pressure, and an inability to consistently act as that vertical connector; the issue was prominent! Out of his 28 carries, only one was progressive. Once again, role clarity seemed to come under scrutiny in the phases when Thapa and Dimitri Petratos, the non-CAM, often occupied similar midfield spaces. When Tangri was already struggling in distribution, Thapa's very average outing further disconnected midfield from attack, forcing Bagan into more direct and less controlled formations. Things started to take a shape after Sahal came in at the 69th minute to replace Tangri, and Thapa was free to go deeper.

3. Sahal and Cummings over Dimi:

One major talking point was the early substitution of Manvir Singh. Alberto's injury made Mehtab's introduction inevitable, but withdrawing Manvir as early as the 17th minute was debatable. If it aligned with the coach's tactical plan, the follow-up decision raises further questions: why introduce Dimitri Petratos then? Post-change, Robson shifted back to the left, Liston operated on the right, and Petratos occupied central spaces althought it was intended to make him operate kind of like a second striker. However, the structural adjustment added little value. Petratos struggled to influence the game : low involvement, low pass accuracy of just 60 % in the opposition half, and minimal end product as he failed to make any key passes and floated only one cross. For a player operating centrally, the lack of progression and chance creation was evident.

Post Credits to @IndSuperLeague.


In contrast, Sahal Abdul Samad and Jason Cummings immediately elevated the attacking dynamics when introduced. Sahal's close control and dribbling disrupted defensive shape, while Cummings' movement kept the defenders a bit of extra cautious. Their presence improved chance creation and shifted the tempo in Bagan's favour.



The freekick from which Cummings scored, showcases his value and class. When Petratos is under-delivering on setpieces too, it's a basic tactical call to deploy a natural left footer, and a more natural CAM with the experience to operate as a centre forward, in those situations.

Post Credits to @FanCode.


The coach echoed the same; managing difficult moments without regular opportunities, coming off the bench and still delivering such performances made him very pleased with them. And if he wanted three foreigners upfront, Maclaren, Robson, and Cummings would be the best option possible.

At this stage of the league, maximizing attacking efficiency is key and deploying profiles like Sahal or Cummings centrally, supported by two amongst Liston, Manvir, and Robson on the wings, appears a more effective structural option than persisting with an under-performing fit.

Post Credits to @mohunbagansg.


4. Game without Authority:

No fluency, less passes, low accuracy, poor xG, uncharacteristically low ball possession, dysfunctional midfield : Mohun Bagan delivered another below-par performance at Vivekananda Yuba Bharati Krirangan, a venue where their dominance has noticeably dipped in recent matches. Structurally, they allowed Punjab FC too much control conceding 20 shots compared to their 12, with just over 400 passes and 54 % possession. Even that possession was inflated by late game chasing phases. The free flow was missing again and it was Punjab who were playing like the home team. Sergio Lobera, during post match conference, agreed that he wasn't happy with the way the game was played.

Post Credits to @IndSuperLeague.


Despite a well taken goal, Jamie Maclaren appears to be going through a slight dip in sharpness. Robson also looked off tempo post-injury, struggling to influence play. Liston Colaco showed flashes, hitting the woodwork, but lacked the golden touch. Meanwhile, a key moment saw Jason Cummings and Dimitri Petratos fail to convert a high value chance following a deflection from Sahal Abdul Samad. So the players are still missing tap-ins now!

Bagan conceded higher xG than Punjab, underlining defensive and midfield drawbacks. Additionally, touches in the opposition box have dropped significantly compared to earlier matches, reflecting reduced attacking penetration and final-third presence.

The team lacked control over tempo and spatial dominance, allowing the opposition to progress through central zones and open flanks with minimal resistance. Without compactness or coordinated pressing, second ball recoveries and transitional structure broke down, resulting in sustained pressure and territorial loss.

5. Dealing with Physical Pressure:

Punjab imposed a highly physical game; 16 fouls with relatively lenient officiating which disrupted Mohun Bagan's rhythm. Key incidents (Alberto's injury, repeated off the ball contact on Robson, Liston and Maclaren, bad fouls on Tom to mention a few) forced Bagan to shift to a more compact mid block. While this improved ball recovery in controlled phases, it also reduced pressing aggression and left spaces vulnerable during transitions.

Technically, there are better ways to respond to such physical setups – quicker ball circulation through one and two touch passing to avoid duels, using third man combinations to bypass extra pressure, and creating wide overloads with quick switches to stretch the block. At the same time, maintaining a stronger defense (3+2) ensures protection against transitions, while drawing fouls in dangerous areas can help create more chances from set pieces. Managing physicality isn't about matching it ; rather it's about structurally avoiding it while retaining control. For a team like Mohun Bagan who are there to be the champions and not to do mere championship fights, as captain Subhasish Bose mentioned, they must be more tactical here in the upcoming fixtures.


Additionally, "Ball Boy Awareness" also came into question. We will talk about two instances here. One during the first half, when the ball went out, Robson asked for a quick return but was refused by one of the ball boys since another ball was on the pitch costing valuable seconds unnecessarily. It is not a ball boy's duty to look after it. It would have been needed 2 to 3 seconds for other players to kick the extra ball out of the ground. In contrast, in the 95th minute, with Punjab trailing 2-3, the ball was immediately handed to the opposition for a quick throw-in. In a home game for Mohun Bagan, such situational awareness is basic, even for the ball boys. Ball boys are part of the match ecosystem; game management at home is an advantage, and it needs to be understood and executed properly.



Mohun Bagan won't get the service of Alberto and Apuia against North East United FC in Guwahati. But this should not bother them as they have plenty of resources to overcome this match with 3 points. They only need to keep the things simple and place a proper lineup. With 17 points from 8 matches, they are now one point behind of MCFC with 5 more matches to go!

Tags:

You might like

View all
Previous Post Next Post
Share to other apps
Copy Post Link