12 Kolkata: Mohun Bagan SG are laying down a marker in this Indian Super League season. Their ability to play with intensity and consistency match after match and week after week is something of an envy for the rival teams. Barring some hiccups early on, their march to the ISL Shield has a kind of catch-me-if-you-can look.
And unlike the last season, when the team under Antonio Lopez Habas required a win over Mumbai City FC to lay hands on their maiden Shield, Jose Molina's Mohun Bagan this time have three more matches to seal the deal.
Odisha FC will be the first of these hurdles at the Salt Lake Stadium on Sunday. So, how is it like standing on the cusp of history, becoming the first team to defend the Shield in ISL history?
"Just a normal game," Molina pointed out, almost anticlimactically, on the eve of the game. "Tomorrow, we've to do the same thing we have been doing — working hard, defending and attacking. Trying to concede as few goals as possible. Trying to score as many goals as possible. Finally trying to win and getting the three points," he said.
Just like the coach's words, it is this routine-like efficiency in overcoming the challenges which has set Molina's team apart from others.
The team consists of quality players, but as Molina said, "you need to have quality and hard work" for success.
Jamie Maclaren — who has scored four goals in the past two matches — reflected on another aspect. "We've shown across this season that we don't just rely on one goal scorer, we rely on a lot of goal scorers. And that's a sign of a good team. That's a sign of the team that they're hungry from the back all the way through to the front," the Aussie striker said.
With 49 points from 21 games — already the highest ever points tally in a single ISL season — Bagan could have clinched the Shield on Saturday itself but second-placed FC Goa (42 points from 21 matches) kept their slim hopes alive with a win over Kerala Blasters.
Odisha have their own ambitions to fulfil as well.
Jahouh leaves Odisha FC ‘unilaterally':
Placed seventh with 29 points, Sergio Lobera's team hopes to stay on track for finding a spot in the playoffs. Their aspirations have been hit with an inconsistent run in the new year. And perhaps adding insult to injury, they will face a team with an unbeaten home run without key player Ahmed Jahouh. The Moroccan midfielder has left Odisha FC "unilaterally" and the club is considering an "appropriate action" seeing in his departure "a serious breach of contract."
Not one to take an opponent lightly, Molina though is focused on his own team.
They have the historic 50-point mark in sight. They have the history Shield in sight.