Last five meetings in cup finals between Mohun Bagan and East Bengal

Find out which team - Mohun Bagan or East Bengal, has an upperhand in the last five cup finals.

A rivalry that has been running for almost a century is about to resurface once again in the centre of the football-crazy city of Kolkata. Mohun Bagan and East Bengal are going to compete in the 132nd edition of the Durand Cup final this Sunday at the Vivekananda Yuba Bharati Krirangan in a replay of the 2004 Durand Cup final. This rivalry has been going on for a long time and is full of history and emotions. Millions of people will be watching again as the two most famous clubs in India will fight for the Durand Cup 2023 title.

The Kolkata derby has witnessed momentous clashes everytime these two teams have faced each other in major cup finals. The rivalry between Mohun Bagan and East Bengal has grown with the years and now encompasses the entirety of India and even the rest of the world.

In this article, we look back at the last five meetings in cup finals between the Kolkata giants.

5. Federation Cup Final - 2 October, 2010

At the Federation Cup final that happened on 2nd October 2010 at the Barabati Stadium, Cuttack, the only goal scored by East Bengal's Reisangmi Vashum in the 54th minute proved to be the match-winner, and his contributions were crucial to the win. Trevor James Morgan was the coach that time for the Red & Gold Brigade.

There is no denying the misfortune that befell Mohun Bagan. They were unsuccessful in their attempt to win the game despite having the upper hand for the bulk of the match's duration and creating more scoring opportunities.

4. Durand Cup Final - 10 November, 2004

East Bengal and Mohun Bagan competed against one another in the 117th Durand Cup Final on November 10, 2004, at the Ambedkar Stadium in Delhi.

East Bengal won the Durand Cup for the sixteenth time under coach Subhas Bhowmick with a final score of 2-1. That evening, East Bengal captain Chandan Das scored two goals, the second of which was the match-winner. The only goal scored by Mohun Bagan on that day was an own goal by Douglas Silva of East Bengal. Chandan Das was adjudged the man of the match for his outstanding performance in the Kolkata derby.

3. IFA Shield Final - 28 September, 2003

In the 2003 IFA Shield final, Mohun Bagan defeated East Bengal 5-3 on penalties. Mohun Bagan, who won the prestigious IFA Shield for the 20th time, performed well to keep East Bengal scoreless for the first 90 minutes and 30 minutes of extra-time. After the regulation time ended 0-0, Mohun Bagan scored all of their penalties, but Muttath Suresh for East Bengal missed his spot kick which was saved by Prasanta Dora.

Suley Musah, Bijen Singh, and Surkumar Singh managed to find the back of the net for East Bengal, but Jose Ramirez Barretto, Palash Karmakar, Mehtab Hussain, Sunil Chhetri, and Lolendro Singh all scored for Mohun Bagan which lead the Mariners to the IFA Shield title in 2003 .

2. IFA Shield Final - 16 September, 2000

The IFA Shield is the second-oldest football tournament in India. On September 16, 2000, the 106th final of the IFA Shield was played at the Salt Lake Stadium, Kolkata and it featured a matchup between the Kolkata giants, Mohun Bagan and East Bengal. Chandan Das scored for East Bengal in the first half and later Jose Ramirez Barreto scored the equaliser for Mohun Bagan in the second half.

After 120 minutes of action ending with a score of 1-1, East Bengal emerged victorious by a score of 4-1 on penalties to take home the IFA Shield for the 25th time. Sangram Mukherjee of East Bengal was awarded the man of the match for his sheer determination under the post.

1. McDowell Cup Final - 10 July, 2000

The sixth and final McDowell Cup competition organized by Indian Football Association (IFA) was held in Kolkata, and the winner was East Bengal. In the cup final, East Bengal edged past their arch-rivals Mohun Bagan by a scoreline of 1-0.

Anit Ghosh was the goal-scorer for East Bengal that day and his match-winning goal earned his team their third title making them the most successful team in the McDowell Cup which started in 1995.