Shillong, Apr 13: Mohun Bagan won the Indian Super League 2024-25 Cup after a 2-1 victory against Bengaluru FC in Kolkata last night.
An own goal (49′) put Bengaluru in front but Jason Cummings (72′) equalised before Jamie Maclaren (96′) provided the winner in extra time.
Bagan came from behind after trailing by a goal to successfully cap off the league double, having already clinched the ISL Shield this season, and have concluded the current campaign unbeaten at home. They are just the second team after Mumbai City FC (in 2020-21) to win the League Shield and the ISL Cup in the same season.
Later, at the season-ending prize distribution ceremony, NorthEast United FC’s Alaaeddine Ajaraie picked up two individual awards – the Golden Ball for best player and Golden Boot for top scorer for his record 23 goals this season.
Mohun Bagan won the League Shield by finished at the top of the round-robin stage with 56 points from 24 matches, 8 points ahead of second-placed FC Goa. They thus became the first club to win back-to-back League Shields since this was introduced in 2019. Bengaluru were third in the league, while NEUFC finished fourth, Jamshedpur FC fifth and Mumbai City sixth.
These top six teams progressed to the knockouts where NorthEast United exited at the hands of Jamshedpur in Shillong at the end of March.
Mohun Bagan and Bengaluru both won their respective two-legged semifinals 3-2 on aggregate, the Mariners against Jamshedpur and Bengaluru against Goa.
In the final, Bagan banked on home support to make a defining start to the game, with Maclaren coming close with a right-footed shot, which was saved in the bottom left corner by Gurpreet Singh Sandhu in the ninth minute.
They kept functioning dynamically in tandem, as Anirudh Thapa, usually pulling the strings at the centre, made an inroad into the 18-yard area and hastened towards a right footed shot from the left side of the box that was blocked in time.
The Blues responded with a flurry of opportunities around the 20th minute mark, with Alberto Noguera stretching the Mohun Bagan defence wide and delivering a cross for Sunil Chhetri that the forward couldn’t capitalise upon. A subsequent headed effort from Edgar Mendez was saved at the centre of the goal by Vishal Kaith to keep the scores level.
Bengaluru bagged the breakthrough in the 49th minute, courtesy of an own goal by defender Alberto Rodriguez. Williams was afforded ample space on the right flank and he optimised it with a whipping cross directed for Mendez inside the box. Subhasish Bose, who was marking Williams, could not close down his target. Rodriguez attempted to clear the ball but ended up hammering it into the back of the net under pressure.
The Kolkata side earned a reprieve in the form of a penalty due to a handball by Chinglensana Singh. In the 72nd minute, Cummings stepped up for spot-kick duties and effortlessly converted the opportunity by caressing the ball into the bottom left corner with his left foot to bring the contest back on level terms.
The match entered the extra time, and it did not take Maclaren too long to finally carve an impact in the grand finale. With Bagan exerting numbers ahead, the Bengaluru defence consequently slipped into a spot of bother and Maclaren’s incisive instinct tapped upon that with a fierce effort from inside the box as soon as he gained possession to unsettle Sandhu and hit the centre of the net in the 96th minute, sealing a memorable campaign for the Mariners.
ISL 2024-25 Awards:
Best Grassroots Programme: Jamshedpur FC
Best Elite Youth Programme: Punjab FC
Golden Glove Award: Vishal Kaith (Mohun Bagan)
Golden Boot Award: Alaaeddine Ajaraie (NorthEast United)
Emerging Player of the League: Brison Fernandes (FC Goa)
Golden Ball: Alaaeddine Ajaraie (NorthEast United)
(Photo: ISL Media)
