At full-time, Antonio Lopez Habas had his hand on his head. The Mohun Bagan Super Giant head coach had failed to beat Mumbai City FC in two finals over four years.
But for the Mohun Bagan faithful, he has been nothing short of a legend, with cheers of “Habas! Habas!” ringing around the stands before kick-off.
Having taken charge of the club mid-season, in January 2024, he guided the team to its maiden Indian Super League (ISL) Winners Shield and yet another ISL final – a record-extending fourth for Habas personally.
“In my case, it might be true (that ISL is synonymous with Habas). But that information is not important or relevant. What matters is Mohun Bagan now and how it performs,” Habas said.
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Mohun Bagan Super Giant started the 2023-24 season on a high – winning the Durand Cup, beating East Bengal in the final. But as the season progressed, Bagan’s form fell, losing three consecutive games in the AFC Cup.
Consecutive losses in the ISL in December was the final nail in the coffin as its head coach, Juan Ferrando, was sacked as Habas took charge in January 2024.
In four months, the Spaniard has not just taken the club to two finals but has gotten the best out of players – Anirudh Thapa and Liston Colaco – who were struggling under Ferrando.
Learning from Benitez and international exposure
Habas belongs to the breed of managers who had a rather low-key profile as a player, playing mostly in Spain’s second division and retiring at 29 with a knee injury.
He started his coaching with the reserve side of Atletico Madrid in 1990 and within three years, was assisting Xabier Azkargorta at the Bolivian national team – where he had his first prominent stint as manager.
In his two stints with La Verde (first as an assistant and then as manager) , he took them to the quarterfinals and finals of the Copa America, in 1995 and 1997, respectively. It was the best performance of Bolivia in over two decades.
In the 1997 Copa America final, his team finished second-best to only Brazil, under World Cup-winning manager Mario Zagalo.
“Brazil had a fantastic team, with world-class players such as (Claudio) Tafarell, Cafú, Roberto Carlos, Dunga, Edmundo (Neto) and Ronaldo.
“Bolivia put up a big fight by drawing the match 1-1 on half-time and making four shots at Tafarell’s goalposts, but Ronaldo tilted the match in the end for Brazil,” the Spaniard told Goal in a previous interview.
After the turn of the 21st century, he worked as assistant coach to Rafael Benitez in Spain helping Valencia win the La Liga title in 2002.
After his move to India, his experience bore fruits right from the inaugural season of the Indian Super League, where Atletico de Kolkata, under his management, beat Kerala Blasters 1-0 to win the trophy – one that marked his love story with Indian football.
FILE PHOTO: Team Atletico De Kolkata FC celebrate their win over Chennaiyin FC with coach Antonio Habas at Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, Goa. | Photo Credit: PRASHANT NAKWE/ The Hindu
“It is a good time for me (here) because I coached Bolivia, Bolivar, and then won the league title with Benitez’s Valencia, the UEFA Cup and the Super Cup. Then I coached in South Africa (Mamelodi Sundowns in the South Africa Premier Division). I am very proud and happy to be here,” Habas said.
In a decade of his stay in India, he has won almost half of his matches (48 per cent), losing just 12 of his 118 matches, winning three trophies -- two ISL trophies and the Shield this year.
Style of play
Habas, though starting with a 4-3-1-2 formation while managing Bolivia, has preferred a three-man defence over the years, with the same trend following at Mohun Bagan this season.
Using a 3-1-4-2 shape, with Manvir Singh and Liston Colaco on the flanks has helped maximised wing-play -- three-fourths (75.4 percent) of Mohun Bagan’s attacks have happened through the flanks this season.
His team has typically walked the road of pragmatism for results, looking for an early lead and then using two blocks of defence – the centre-backs followed by two defensive midfielders and wing-backs in front – to defend the lead.
Mohun Bagan scored 26 goals in the first half, including Jason Cummings’ strike in the final, the highest among all ISL teams this season.
The approach, however, is not as defensive as Jose Mourinho’s park-the-bus strategy and the side maintains balance with counter-attacks through the wings.
Under this setup, midfielder Anirudh Thapa has shone well as a No. 10, after being played out of position in a deeper role under Ferrando. And it was here, the shift in position, that saw him struggle in the ISL final.
An incomplete circle
Habas has been in two ISL finals as Mohun Bagan coach, in 2020-21 and 2023-24. Having lost the previous one to Mumbai City, he had intended to ‘complete the circle’ in his last phase of coaching this time around.
“That final loss now is past us. We are thinking only about tomorrow. We have to complete the circle. I am satisfied with my team’s performance (so far) but I have one more point (to prove) tomorrow. We need to win,” Habas had said in the pre-match press conference.
However, success eluded him this time as the Islanders continued to be his Achilles’ heel, beating Mohun Bagan 3-1, with goals from Jorge Pereyra Diaz, Bipin Singh and Jakub Vojtus, at the Salt Lake Stadium on May 4.
Mohun Bagan Super Giant goalkeeper Vishal Kaith saves a goal during the Indian Super League (ISL) 2023-24 final match between Mohun Bagan Super Giants and Mumbai City FC. | Photo Credit: Swapan Mahapatra/ PTI
“Today, we had to defend along the line of the box, something we have not done usually. Merit the opponents for it. My players fought until the last minute but I think, psychologically, too many matches in the last month might have exhausted them,” Habas said.
Mohun Bagan had been playing must-win games in its pursuit of the ISL Shield, facing Punjab FC (April 6), Bengaluru FC (April 11), Mumbai City (April 15) before playing Odisha FC in the semifinal over two legs (April 23 and 28).
Additionally, the team missed the services of Albanian striker Armando Sadiku, who was handed a disciplinary suspension by the All India Football Federation for an offensive gesture after being sent off in the semifinal first leg against Odisha FC.
“I think Armando is more aggressive than Jason (Cummings) or Dimi (Dimitrios Petratos). That allows good possibility (space) for other guys to play. In football, we can’t change history,” Habas said.
The Spaniard, however, is not ready to end his coaching chapter yet. Mohun Bagan plays in the AFC Asian Champions League 2 next season and Habas hopes to try and complete the circle next season.
“I am talking with the club to continue in the next season. On the previous day, I had said that I wanted to retire as a coach in India. So, I am negotiating with the club to continue for another season,” he said.
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