The 11th season of the Indian Super League will premier with a contest featuring two of the league’s most proficient sides – Mohun Bagan Super Giant (MBSG) and Mumbai City FC (MCFC).
There cannot be a better way to start the long season as MBSG, the ISL Shield winner, launches its title defence against the ISL Cup winner, the Islanders.
The two heavyweights have dominated the title duels in three of the last four seasons, with MBSG and MCFC winning the Shield and Cup among themselves in the last two seasons.
MCFC bagged a double (both League Shield and the Cup) in the 2020-21 season beating league-debutant MBSG.
In the 2022-23 season, MCFC won the Shield before MBSG bagged the Cup. The ownership order was reversed in the last season.
In head-to-head, MCFC has dominated the duel, winning seven out of 10 meetings.
MBSG recorded its first win in the final League fixture (on April 15 at Salt Lake Stadium) of the previous season to win its maiden shield in front of its supporters.
Both sides have undergone a lot of transformation in the pre-season transfers, with each having several new names joining the squad. It now remains to be seen how the revamped squads help the two maintain their supremacy this season, with an increment in the number of participants.
Mohammedan Sporting makes its debut this season to make it a 13-team affair while Kolkata becomes the most notable city in the league, getting its third team on the roster.
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East Bengal FC, which has been finishing in the bottom half of the table in the past four seasons, will be looking to make a better finish with a new look squad.
NorthEast United FC, Odisha FC, Jamshedpur FC and Punjab FC complete the line-up from the north and east while Bengaluru FC, Chennaiyin FC, FC Goa, Kerala Blasters FC and Hyderabad FC bring in the challenge from the south and west to make it a truly pan-Indian affair.
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