ISL 2025-26: Odisha FC Season Review
Odisha FC finish the ISL season as the 11th-standing team with just two victories
A season that might be the most average season for Odisha FC in their Indian Super League history. A season that they would love to forget and look to build for the future seasons. 11 games, and they have just won two fixtures in the ISL 2025/26 season, which led them to finish the campaign being 11th on the ISL couch with a very hopeless approach.
Despite being tested so many times this season and playing with an inexperienced squad, we can tell they have produced many good players over the past few years. Odisha FC really struggled, but they will look to turn their fortunes around and go all in to secure a good start next season.
The next season’s roadmap is one of the major things for the Juggernauts, as they are one of the sides that were in a lot of uncertainty about their football operation this season and started the team’s training very late.
Odisha FC was expected to push for some good results in this season but faced some good challenges when they faced ISL’s strong sides and failed to convert those chances, which led to them becoming the 11th-standing club.
Odisha FC struggled to maintain the momentum and eventually found themselves falling short in this season, which might be a thing that they would like to rectify from the start of the next season and look to bounce back with the old rhythm they are known for.
Odisha FC’s performance in ISL 2025-26
Number of Matches Played: 13
Wins: 2
Draws: 5
Losses: 6
Total Goals Scored (GF): 14
Total Goals Conceded (GA): 22
Overall Points: 11
Top Performers
Rahim Ali
Odisha FC’s strike power, Rahim Ali, was their main man, who was destined for those goals this season. Where all things came out of nowhere as an unexpected moment, the Indian forward stepped up big times for the Juggernauts whenever his team needed him. Rahim is known for the relentless pressing and intelligent movement. Rahim could play a crucial role in disputing the opposition’s defence.
He bagged 3 goals and 3 assists for Odisha FC this season, which indicates that, apart from scoring those goals, he has a knack for giving those passes to his teammates, which might cause damage to the opponents.
His ability to stretch the defence and his pace will add more depth to the system. If Rahim executes his pressing game effectively and continues his creative form, he could prove decisive in shaping Odisha FC’s attacking threat in the next season.
Suhair VP
Suhair VP has been a ray of hope for Odisha FC during a difficult ISL 2025-26 campaign. The forward stepped up when his team needed him most, scoring four goals and emerging as one of their standout performers. Suhair emerged as Odisha FC’s biggest attacking threat during their difficult season, scoring four goals for the team, which made him stand apart.
He played almost 666 minutes in this ISL season. With the performance and Odisha FC’s slightly shaken team, he still managed to get his name in the top five Indian goal scorers list with four goals, along with Edmund Lalrindika and Ryan Williams.
Underperformer of the Season
Isak Vanlalruatfela
Looking closely into their campaign, despite Odisha FC having many different kinds of problems,, they faced. From defensive vulnerability to no attacking outlet, sometimes from those flanks, but they still managed to get something around them. But with those wing options, they were nearly not ready to shine in this season, which was a proper eye-opener for the Juggernauts.
Isak Vanlalruatfela emerged as their underperformer of this season as he entered the race as one of the most exciting young Indian wingers, but the hype didn’t pay off.
Despite a good amount of playing time, he still didn’t manage the outputs for his side, as in the whole season he scored zero goals and gave zero assists, which made him the underperformer this season.
Top Performances of the Season
Odisha FC 4 – 1 NorthEast United FC
Odisha FC 2 – 1 SC Delhi
Managerial Report Card
T. G. Purushothaman, the head coach of Odisha FC, struggled a lot in this ISL season with the team. Some uncertainty occurred from the very first with Odisha FC and their operations, as they were very late to rebuild the team. T. G. Purushothaman walked into a difficult situation in the Odisha FC camp.
With his arrival, there was a new hope to get the better out of the teams, but that did not stay early with them as Odisha FC didn’t fight back against the tough sides in the ISL 2025-26 season.
Playing around 13 games in the season, they just managed to clinch two wins, and five games ended in a draw. With a poor defensive side like Odisha FC, they struggled a lot with their inexperienced side. After the departure of Sergio Lobera, he was viewed as the main man for the Juggernauts’ rebuilding phase, but in this season, it didn’t follow the same plan.
He put a good formation, which he also used in their last game against Jamshedpur FC, where the game started with a 4-2-3-1 style, but as the game stretched, he moved the team into a very narrow shape.
The plan was good for the defensive system, but by improving the defence, this system isolated the attackers while Rahim and Isak could not make the best out of their potential. With this also there was some defensive dilemma as Mohun Bagan beat them 5-1 and East Bengal thrashed them 3-0.
He tried his best to have his players at their energetic best, but destiny was not with him as they finished 11th on the ISL table.
Also Read: ISL 2025-26: Chennaiyin FC season review
Lessons Learned from the Season
There were a lot of weaknesses in this side of Odisha FC as they were continuously caught off guard with the system they had played. The two wins were the best part for them because if they hadn’t chased those wins, then it might have been a relegation face-off between Odisha and Mohammedan SC. But they survived with ease as they beat SC Delhi and NorthEast United FC.
As we mentioned earlier, their weaknesses were the most vulnerable things. This season offered many lessons from the start. A defensive structure might be the club’s first priority, as they conceded a ton of goals with their staged defensive mistakes. With that, the system they have used from the start has somehow isolated the attacking options upfront.
Odisha FC’s midfield needs more kind of control and creativity, which can feed those balls through the opposition’s defence, which might cause wounds. The Juggernauts learned the hard way about how important it is to have a strong foreign core in their squad to be able to compete with the best in the ISL. The lack of any leadership skills from foreign players or any clinical foreign striker ended up setting them back really badly.
Fan’s View
A possible nightmare for the Odisha FC supporters, as they failed to deliver on their expectations. Those who were in the top six or in the Super Cup final somehow find themselves 11th on the table, which badly describes their ISL 2025-26 season. They just secured two wins in this season; along with this, they have played their three designated home games in Goa.
Odisha FC’s supporters came across a very hopeless campaign to remember. After the departure of Sergio Lobera and core players like Hugo Boumous, Roy Krishna, and Ahmed Jahouh, they are still waiting to find the actual rhythm in the team. Many fans perhaps appreciated their efforts and believed this season was a transitional phase with rebuilding.
What’s next for Odisha FC?
As we all know, the current situation in the Indian football circuit no longer has faith in this system. Odisha FC once stopped their football-related operations earlier, but somehow set up the team and played the ISL 2025-26.
But after the season, the question is still open about their participation. But this was the transitional phase for the Juggernauts, with a lot of experiments here and there and new tactical outcomes.
They have survived the relegation, but what’s next for them? The upcoming season and the upcoming transfer window will be very vital for them to reshape the team.
They might need to add experience along with some good foreign signings in every department. They look to build a core team and strengthen the whole system and aim to bounce back to the past form they are widely known for.
Where did Odisha FC finish in the points table?
Odisha FC finished 11th in the points table.
How many wins did Odisha FC register in the campaign?
Odisha FC won only two matches.
How many goals did Odisha FC score and concede?
They scored 14 goals and conceded 22 goals.
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Rohit Mistri is a sports journalist from Kolkata with over two years of experience in the field. He has extensively covered Indian football, including major tournaments such as the Calcutta Football League and the Indian Super League. His work spans on-ground reporting, match coverage, and in-depth storytelling, along with interviews of prominent sporting personalities. Rohit brings strong communication skills and a deep passion for sports narratives to everything he writes.