I-League 2015-16: Mohun Bagan make a winning start to their title defence
A brace from Cornell Glen ensured a 3-1 winning start to Mohun Bagan's 2015/16 I-League campaign. Debutantes Aizawl produced a hearty performance in the second half of the game, but failed to break through the defending champions' shaky defence.
Starting lineups:
Mohun Bagan: Shilton Paul (Gk)(C); Pritam Kotal, Kingshuk Debnath, Sanjay Balmuchu, Dhanachandra Singh; Souvik Chakraborty, Yusa Katsumi, Manish Bhargav, Kean Lewis; Balwant Singh, Cornell Glen.
Aizawl FC: Soiram Poirei (GK); Lalthazuala, Emmanuel, Yuta Kinowaki, Lalruatthara; Lalbiathanga, Albert Zohmingmawia, Malsawmtluanga (C), Brandon Vanlalremdika; Lalchawnkima; Alfred Jayran.
Both team started with slightly altered versions of the 4-3-3 formation. For Mohun Bagan, Kean Lewis, Balwant Singh and Cornell Glen made the front three as Manish Bhargav started in a deeper role on the right.
The defending champions were quick off the mark and went into the attack with the first whistle. They took the lead in the 5th minute with Glen scoring the first goal ofI-League 2015/16.
Just before the goal, experienced goalkeeper Soiram Poirei made a good reflex save to keep out the Trinidadian. Balwant Singh cut the ball back from the byline and passed it to Kean Lewis at the edge of the box. The Indian midfielder picked out Glen in the box, who swept it past Soiram with a swift swing of his boot.
Aizawl struck back immediately though, as Indian international Pritam Kotal scored an own goal. Dhana failed to clear, and contain, the danger of Albert, who drove down the byline from the right wing, before the ball reached Jayran. The Liberian striker's low cross across the box was unfortunately poked into his own net by Pritam Kotal.
In a first half, which saw end-to-end action, Mohun Bagan regained the lead in the 21st minute. The goal arrived from a counter attack, with Balwant Singh running up the pitch, after collecting the ball near his own team's box. The Indian striker picked out Glen in the box, with a pass from the outside of his right boot.
Glen received the ball and turned his marker in one swift movement, before rifling the ball into the top corner of the net.
Aizawl manager Manuel Retamero made a tactical change to contain Mohun Bagan and instructed his defenders to move up the pitch. The back four deployed a high line of defence, and were looking to catch the Mohun Bagan forwards offside in every attack.
But the ploy did not work, as Mohun Bagan soon made it 3-0. They breached the off-side trap with a long ball from the back and Balwant Singh timed his run brilliantly to chest the ball down, before overpowering his marker and firing in a low shot at goal. The ball took a slight deflection off the foot of a defender, before creeping into the bottom corner of the far post.
Despite conceding the third goal, Aizawl showed a lot of heart and determination. They pushed forward in numbers to score a goal before halftime. Albert was causing Dhana a lot of problems down the right wing, as Aizawl looked to use the width of the pitch.
Mohun Bagan's defence was looking vulnerable, and it even forced Sanjoy Sen to make a tactical change. The Mariners shifted to a more traditional 4-4-2 formation with Balwant and Glen pairing up in attack. Both Manish and Kean started providing cover to their fullbacks in order to deal with Aizawl's wingplay.
Mohun Bagan, somehow, managed to hold on to their two-goal advantage going into the half-time break.
To start the second half, Sanjoy Sen made another tactical change to bring more control in the midfield. Manish Bhargav was replaced by Bikramjit Singh at the center of the park, as Katsumi moved to the wings.
Aizawl had more control of the ball, and the game, in the second half, and both their fullbacks were making surging runs down the wings to put in crosses into the box. In addition, Mohun Bagan midfielders were being closed down by their opponents, whenever they had the possession.
Mohun Bagan were struggling to gain any momentum, and they were lucky to survive a good spell of pressure from Aizawl in the opening 20 minutes of the second half.
In the 78th minute, Albert missed a golden opportunity to provide hopes of a comeback as his effort nestled into the side-netting. Jaryan picked out Albert on the right wing, and the winger had a lot of space and time on his hands, however, he could not keep his shot on target.
The match ended 3-1, but Aizawl will have a lot of positives to take away from this game. Their Spanish manager will have to work on the finishing of his strikers though, as they should have scored more than just one goal, after that dominating second-half display.
Mohun Bagan's manager Sanjoy Sen will be worried about how vulnerable his team's defence looked at times, and knows that much bigger challenges await them in the upcoming fixtures.