The League winner’s Shield will be up for grabs in the final fixture of ISL-10 season’s league engagements where Mohun Bagan Super Giant will be looking to depose the current leader Mumbai City FC to claim the pride of place.
To achieve this Mohun Bagan SG will be looking at its strong home support and erase its unfavourable record against one of the most formidable outfits in terms of form and composition, when it makes its final outing of the league stage against Mumbai City at home in Salt Lake Stadium here on Monday.
The records hold Mumbai a clear favourite, as Mohun Bagan SG has never been able to beat the former in the eight ISL meetings so far (Mumbai City won six matches while the remaining two ended in draws).
The Mariners need to conquer this psychological demon and secure the first success against the Islanders as they aim to win a maiden League Shield.
Mumbai City, which is leading the standings with 47 points from 21 matches needs a draw while Mohun Bagan, which has 45 points from 21 matches, needs to win to overtake Mumbai City and reverse the heartbreak of the 2020-21 season where Mumbai City walked away 2-0 winner in the fight for the League Shield.
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“It will be a good match as two of the best teams will be vying for the Shield. You cannot expect to get a goal in the very first minute, but one thing I have learnt is that over-thinking is not a good thing, and we need to be patient and calm and play our game,” said Mohun Bagan’s midfield marshal Joni Kauko.
The Finnish International played an influential role in revamping Mohun Bagan’s performance after a series of bad results midway through the season that also saw the departure of its previous coach Juan Ferrando. Kauko has brought in the quality as a playmaker and helped Mohun Bagan’s attack look like a well-oiled machine.
Kauko’s presence has been central in the team’s previous two away wins as it played in the absence of its veteran Spanish coach Antonio Lopez Habas, who has skipped the team’s last three outings owing to illness. Habas remained absent in the pre-match briefing ahead of the Mumbai City match but is expected to return to the ‘dugout’ on the match day.
“It is not going to be a nettle between two quality sides where Mumbai City will take the field as the favourite to win the ISL. But I can assure you that we are going to give them a good fight in front of 60000 of our home supporters,” said the Mohun Bagan assistant coach Manuel Perez.
Mohun Bagan SG is unlikely to see the return of its injured midfielder Sahal Abdul Samad while the remainder of the squad is available for selection.
“There is a lot at stake here as we can win the ISL League Winners Shield again. If you look at the season overall, it has been quite good. Our consistently good performance so far in the season has got us to this position, and in that way the Mohun Bagan match is as important as the previous matches. It is just that the occasion is a little different now, and we are ready for it,” said the Mumbai City coach, Petr Kratky.
Mumbai City, which already has players like Iker Guarrotxena and Ayush Chhikara on the injury list, will be missing another attacker in Vikram Pratap Singh, who is suspended from the match.
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