5 reasons why Mohun Bagan will win the I-League title ahead of East Bengal, Aizawl FC
The 2017 I-League season is in its last legs with only three more rounds of games left to play. With their 1–1 draw against Shillong Lajong in Shillong yesterday, Mohun Bagan sneaked past Aizawl FC to the top of the table.
The Mariners are ahead of the Mizoram-based club on head to head record, although both teams are level on points. Their clash on the 22nd of April in the altitudes of the Rajiv Gandhi Stadium in Aizawl promises to be a title decider.
East Bengal in third are also in with a chance of lifting the title should the front-runners stumble; the Red and Golds are three points behind the top two and still have a mathematical possibility of winning the I-League.
That said, Mohun Bagan look odds-on to land their second I-League title, and here are five reasons why.
#1 Miserly Defence
The Mariners’ primary back four of Eduardo, Anas Edathodika, Subhasish Bose and Pritam Kotal have been instrumental in the club’s rise to the top of the table. As things stand after 15 games, Bagan have conceded the fewest number of goals this season with 10.
Their nearest challengers for the title, Aizawl and East Bengal, have conceded 12 and 13 goals respectively.
One of the common aphorisms in football is “attack wins games, defence wins titles”. This should once again ring true should Mohun Bagan go on to lift the title. And despite boasting a miserly defence, the fact that it hasn’t come at the cost of the team’s attack is a testament to the work being done so far by Sanjoy Sen and his team.
The club’s record so far of eight clean sheets is also the highest in the I-League this season.