Defending champion Mohun Bagan Super Giant finds Mumbai City FC standing in its way as it attempts to complete a season treble in the last title clash of the current domestic football season.
The Salt Lake Stadium will be playing host to an intense battle on Saturday as Bagan seeks to repeat the successful result against the same opponent that fetched the League winner’s Shield at the same venue just 18 days ago.
MCFC, which had to concede the Shield given to the league champion as Bagan upstaged it with a 2-1 win, will be keen to avenge the defeat and redeem its stature by winning the playoff trophy.
For Bagan, the ISL season so far has been about settling scores. It annexed the Shield to get even with the Mumbai outfit, which became the League champion by beating ATK Mohun Bagan in the 2020-21 season.
The playoff final (at Fatorda Stadium in Goa) saw the Islanders emerging triumphant again (2-1) as the Mariners returned home empty-handed.
Having won the Durand Cup and then the Shield, Bagan head coach Antonio Lopez Habas said his team will be looking to “complete the circle” by lifting the playoff title. This will also see it matching MCFC’s record of clinching an ISL double.
With the tickets vanishing fast Bagan can expect over 60,000 fans to shepherd it to its goal. “I will always push for one thing, which is to complete the circle. We have the opportunity on Saturday, and will do our best to achieve it,” Habas said.
“We have learnt from the previous game and will try to start the game a bit differently. We will play our football from the first minute. We will try to compete and win the game,” MCFC head coach Petr Kratky said.
