East Bengal vs Mohun Bagan Preview - Team news, lineups | Durand Cup 2026 Final

The Durand Cup 2026 will be played at the VYBK Stadium, Kolkata.

The Durand Cup 2026 final is poised to be a thrilling battle that will see Kolkata rivals East Bengal and Mohun Bagan against each other in their upcoming clash at the Salt Lake Stadium, Kolkata on Sunday (23 August 2026).

In a repeat of the opening game of the tournament, it’ll be an intense battle between the two best teams in the tournament as they fight hard to clinch the championship and earn bragging rights for their supporters with a compelling win.

The Stakes

East Bengal FC

East Bengal were able to weather the storm over the last few weeks to fight their way to earning a place in the final of the 2026 Durand Cup in their first tournament under Antonio Habas.

Now, the Spanish coach aims to be the nightmare for his former team and inspire his side to get their revenge over the Mariners for the opening-game loss. Habas will need his side to showcase resiliency and grit in defending strongly to close down the gaps for the Mohun Bagan attackers.

However, he’ll also need his players to be brave and decisive on the transitions and be able to finish off chances clinically to clinch an important win.

Getting to defeat Mohun Bagan in a Durand Cup final will be another major achievement under the early parts of East Bengal’s era under Habas, but suffering another derby loss would be a particularly bitter pill to swallow.

Mohun Bagan SG

Mohun Bagan have showcased a lot of grit in their first competition under the guidance of Panagiotis Dilmperis, especially when it comes to grinding their way past opposition in the Durand Cup knockout stages.

They’ve won both their last two matches thanks to their heroics at the penalty shootout, allowing the Mariners to set up another mouth-watering battle against East Bengal in the competition.

However, the Greek coach will urge his side to be way more clinical in actually converting their chances against East Bengal than how they’ve acted in front of goal in the last few games.

He’ll need them to be proactive to make things difficult for the Torchbearers and put on an entertaining spectacle for the fans.

A thrilling win for Mohun Bagan would not only mark another derby win, but prove that they can win trophies under Panagiotis’ guidance. A loss after such hard work, however, would be particularly gutting for the Mariners.

Team News

PV Vishnu, Nacho Monsalve and Danish Farooq are the injury doubts who are likely to miss the Durand Cup final for East Bengal.

Mohun Bagan will be sweating on the fitness of Dejan Drazic, who missed the previous clash against NorthEast United.

Head-to-Head

Matches Played – 409

East Bengal wins – 144

Mohun Bagan wins – 135

Draws – 130

Predicted Lineups

East Bengal FC (4-2-3-1):

Prabhsukhan Gill (GK), Hardik Bhatt, Anwar Ali, Sandip Mandi, Jay Gupta, Mohamad Basim Rashid, Jeakson Singh, Dani Ramirez, Bipin Singh, Chris Ikonomidis, Jesin TK.

Mohun Bagan SG (4-3-3):

Vishal Kaith (GK), Abhishek Singh, Rahul Bheke, Alberto Rodriguez, Subhasish Bose, Lalengmawia Ralte, Samir Zeljkovic, Sahal Abdul Samad, Manvir Singh, Liston Colaco, Jamie Maclaren.

Players to Watchout

Dani Ramirez (East Bengal)

Dani Ramirez has proven himself as a clever addition for East Bengal, raising their energy and unpredictability levels in the final third – but he’s yet to produce anything extraordinary for East Bengal.

Well, the Spanish midfielder has the ideal platform to produce a truly special performance in the 2026 Durand Cup final against Mohun Bagan. Ramirez has scored just one goal in the competition so far, and it’s time for him to be a more threatening figure in the East Bengal attack.

Not only should Ramirez look to be smart in progressing play with his passing qualities, but he needs to showcase his creative genes by delivering better passes and crosses into the box for his teammates to pounce on.

The ex-Punjab FC midfielder also needs to be smarter with his positioning and finishing to be more efficient in putting chances away and inspiring East Bengal to a thrilling win.

Sahal Abdul Samad (Mohun Bagan)

Sahal Abdul Samad has definitely been a standout figure for Mohun Bagan at the 2026 Durand Cup, being the highest-scoring Indian player in the competition with five goals from as many appearances.

That includes the winning goal he scored in the Mariners’ win over East Bengal in the group stages, as well as crucial goals scored against the likes of Jamshedpur FC and CISF Protectors.

Sahal needs to maintain his positive vibe on the opposition half, being smart with his pressing, link-up play and movement to be unpredictable in the danger zones.

He’ll look to continue sneaking his way into the danger zones inside the final third, but Samad needs to be particularly clinical in finishing off moves ruthlessly to be able to guide Mohun Bagan to another important derby win over their Kolkata rivals.

Did you know?

• There have been 24 Kolkata derbies so far in the Durand Cup, out of which East Bengal have won 10 times and Mohun Bagan clinched nine victories.
• Vishal Kaith has kept four clean sheets at the 2026 Durand Cup, the most for any goalkeeper in the competition.
• The last Durand Cup final between East Bengal and Mohun Bagan happened in 2023, which Mohun Bagan won by a 1-0 margin.

Telecast Details

The 2026 Durand Cup final between East Bengal and Mohun Bagan will take place on Sunday, 23 August (2026) at the Salt Lake Stadium, Kolkata.

The match will kick off at 5 PM IST. It will be shown live on Sony Ten 2 as well as be available to live-stream on Sony LIV.

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