ISL 2025-26: Sergio Lobera praises Apuia and Anirudh Thapa after Chennaiyin FC triumph

Mohun Bagan SG takes the second spot in ISL league table

Mohun Bagan SG picked up their second-straight win in the 2025-26 Indian Super League (ISL) with a commanding 2-0 victory over Chennaiyin FC at the Salt Lake Stadium, Kolkata on Monday (23 February 2026).

Goals from Jamie Maclaren and Dimitri Petratos in each half sealed another win to keep the Mariners on track in the ISL title race.

Sergio Lobera was reasonably happy with his players’ performance in the win and believed they performed better than they did in the opening match.

He stated: “I’m very happy with the result and the performance of my team, especially in the second half. It’s true that we had more chances to score more goals and we must be more clinical to convert our chances.”

“The goal difference will be crucial at the end of the season, but I’m happy we generated so many chances. With the level of players we have, we will score more goals in the next games when we get more chances. The effort the players gave today was amazing and I’m really happy with the performance, especially in the second half,” he added.

What did Lobera tell Mohun Bagan SG players to spur second half display?

When asked what he changed about Mohun Bagan SG’s style to inspire their dominant second-half display, the Spaniard explained: “At half time, I told the players we needed to be more tactical because keeping the ball far from the opponent goal makes it easier for them. They are a tough opponent; they have experienced players who can control the spaces in a good way.”

“We increased the rhythm of the game in the second half, we moved the ball faster, found spaces better than the first half and showed more passionate. We need to be loyal to our style of play and in the second half, we could see the clear style of play we have and the players understood what they needed to do to do more damage to Chennaiyin FC,” he further quipped.

Major praise for midfield duo

Lobera had special praise for the quality Lalengmawia Ralte (Apuia), and Anirudh Thapa brings to his system, as he claimed: “When you have players like Apuia and Thapa, it’s like having foreign players in that position. With all respect to the opponents, they are better than some foreign midfielders in the league. We need to give real value to Indian players, and we have some amazing Indian players, not in our squad but other squads also.”

“They deserve more respect. We have good foreign players who are coming to help Indian football, but the players who can help Indian football grow the most are the Indian players themselves, and we have some amazing Indian players,” the gaffer also stated.

Areas of improvement and Dimi Petratos’ performance

On being questioned about what areas of improvement he wants to see from his side going forward, Lobera stated: “I feel that in the second half, we improved as compared to the last game. But we shouldn’t compare with the first game, and we need to be more ambitious to keep scoring more goals.”

“We need to defend results in the right way and the right way for us is to continuous attacking and score more goals. We have improved our fitness conditions to press the opponents to recover the ball in better areas, but I’m happy with their execution. We can improve in something and continue working towards getting better,” he further added.

Finally, Lobera had praise for goal scorer Dimitri Petratos for his goal but believes his entire team effort deserves more praise.

He stated: “Teamwork is the most important quality, but we have very good players who can shine when the team is managing well.”

“Dimi is an amazing player, but I feel when you have the opportunity to shine is when the team is doing well. I’m happy to see Dimi scored the goal, which is the same as any other player scoring. The collective effort is the most ideal thing,” he finished with.

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