AFC Cup 2023-24: Mohun Bagan lose 1-2 to Bashundhara Kings

Indian football club Mohun Bagan Super Giant lost 1-2 to Bangladesh's Bashundhara Kings in Group D of the AFC Cup 2023-24 at the Bashundhara Kings Arena in Dhaka on Tuesday.

Liston Colaco (17’) gave Mohun Bagan the lead in the football match but the home team scored two goals through Miguel Figueira (44’) and Robinho (80’).

Despite the loss, Mohun Bagan SG and Bashundhara Kings both have seven points from four matches. However, it’s the Bangladeshi team which leads the Group D table based on head-to-head. The two teams played out a 2-2 draw in the reverse fixture last month. 

The match got off to an intense start with both teams getting stuck in to win the ball early. However, it was the Indian Super League club which looked the likelier of the two sides to score. Manveer Singh hit the side netting while Liston Colaco, Hugo Boumous and Samad Abdul Samad missed decent opportunities for the Mariners.

Finally, it was Liston Colaco who broke the deadlock. After Jason Cummings’ cross from the left was palmed away by Bashundhara goalkeeper Hasan Srabon, the rebound fell to Liston, who calmly slotted in to give Mohun Bagan the win.

The home team could have drawn level shortly after when Miguel Figueira found himself one-on-one with Mohun Bagan goalkeeper Vishal Kaith but skied his shot. Bashundhara kept growing into the match after the half-hour mark, with Robinho, particularly, looking dangerous in the left flank.

After repeated missed opportunities, the home side finally drew parity just before half-time with Miguel Figueira making amends for his earlier miss after burying a left-footed shot from outside the box to the top left corner. Didier Brossou provided the assist.

With everything to play for in the second-half, both teams traded chances in the second half as the play changed ends constantly. The home side almost took the lead around the 50-minute mark but Robinho’s screamer from distance came out after rattling the right post.

Just after the 60-minute mark, Rakib Hossain dribbled into the box and took a shot on only to be denied by a brilliant save by Vishal Kaith. Mohun Bagan’s Cummings had the ball in the Bashundhara goal 10 minutes later but it was ruled out due to offside.

The home side finally broke through through Robinho, who was brilliant in the match. The Brazilian found himself in space inside the Mohun Bagan box, took a touch and sent Kaith the wrong way. The strike turned out to be the eventual winner.

Mohun Bagan Super Giant will host fellow Indian club Odisha FC next in their penultimate AFC Cup 2023-24 Group D match at Kolkata’s Vivekananda Yuba Bharati Krirangan on November 27.