Kolkata, April 19: Mohun Bagan SG beat the storm and rain to regain their position at the top of the Indian Super League points table. Mohun Bagan SG won their ninth clash against Northeast United FC 1–0 on Sunday evening at the Indira Gandhi Athletic Stadium. Both teams struggled to move the ball on the waterlogged field, but the match continued until the ninety minutes were completed.
After twenty minutes of the kickoff, heavy rain started, which slowly began to affect the game. After the first half, the match was stopped for almost an hour before it could continue. The game eventually resumed after the water was cleared, but the rain returned with the same intensity and rhythm. The ball stopped rolling, players’ spikes sank into the water, and every corner of the pitch was flooded. Despite the conditions, both teams managed to play at the top tier of Indian football, the Indian Super League and match continued.
The rain continued with the same intensity, but the match gradually lost its intensity as time went on. However, Mohun Bagan SG struck early to take the lead. Within five minutes of kickoff, a swift attacking move saw Liston Colaco deliver the ball from the right to Sahal Abdul Samad. From right inside the box, Sahal laid it back to Robson Robinho, who sent it into the net to give Mohun Bagan SG an early advantage.
In the 33rd minute, from Cummings’ pass, Robson Robinho attempted a grounded shot towards the net from the left corner of the eighteen-yard box, but the shot went wide, closely missing the chance to double Mohun Bagan SG’s lead. In the 37th minute, Northeast United created their first real threat. Receiving the ball from Bekey, Parthib Gogoi entered the box from the left and attempted a shot, though Vishal came out and closed the angle beforehand.
The first half ended in favour of Mohun Bagan SG, who dominated with the lead, 11 corners, and 64% ball possession, while the Highlanders did not even register a shot on target. However, in the second half, the rain capitalised on the dominance. Where it seemed the match would not continue due to the ground conditions, the game resumed after almost an hour’s gap.
Though the Highlanders started by trying to equalise the game and created a few attacks, as time went on, Mohun Bagan SG also began attacking. Sergio Lobera seemed to switch to a more defensive approach with his substitutions to protect the slim lead, while Pedro Benali made attacking changes in an attempt to equalise.
But both teams struggled with misplaced passes, barely able to run as they kept slipping, yet they tried their best to compete. Every ball seemed dangerous whenever it entered the box, but both teams’ keepers and defences were very firm.
In additional time, in the 90+2nd minute, the Highlanders almost found their equaliser. From a quick attack, substitute Ankith, from the left inside the box, tried to attempted a shot which Vishal came out and saved, but the rebound fell to Huidrom Thoi Singh, who attempted a shot into the open net. However, Mehtab Singh came in and closed the angle to make an interception, and sealed the score in favour of Mohun Bagan with a 1–0 lead.
After the attack, Ankith seemed to be injured. While attempting the shot, Vishal came in to stop him, and he appeared to have dislocated his leg, after which he was stretchered off the field. After the final whistle, Pedro Benali lost his temper while complaining about the conditions and received a red card. In that moment, several yellow cards were also shown.
Sergio Lobera viewed the match as one where the result mattered more than the performance because of the difficult conditions. He said that his decision to bring on Indian players as the time went was mainly because of the tough pitch and bad weather. He felt that some of the Indian players were better suited to play on a waterlogged ground, as they are more used to such conditions. The changes were not just about tactics, but also about keeping the team stable in a match where normal football was difficult to play.
He admitted that taking off foreign players was not an easy decision, but he trusted the Indian players to adapt better. In the end, he was happy with his choices, as the team managed to keep their performance steady and get the result. Though collecting all three points, Mohun Bagan SG wants to focus on their next big challenge against the Gaurs.
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