ISL: Mohun Bagan Super Giant's performance in playoffs over years

Mohun Bagan became the first team to reach the ISL playoff for five consecutive seasons.

Mohun Bagan became the team to have sealed a berth in the 2024-25 Indian Super League (ISL) playoffs because of their sheer dominance in the second half of the campaign. The Mariners are assured of a place in the ISL semi-final and will be aiming to do an elusive ISL double by winning the trophy after claiming their second consecutive ISL Shield with a win over Odisha FC.

The Mariners have been quite a consistent figure in the ISL playoffs over the last few years. They have maintained their reputation as arguably the most consistent team in the division over the years, always performing at a high enough level to at least make the playoffs, even in campaigns they came up short on the trophy front.

As Mohun Bagan gears up to find their best form in time for the 2025 ISL playoffs, here we look at exactly how their record in the playoffs has been like so far.

Mohun Bagan Super Giant are the ISL 2024-25 Shield winners! The Mariners successfully retain the shield with win over Odisha FC with a late goal from Dimitri Petratos!! #IndianFootball #ISL #LetsFootball #MBSG #MohunBagan pic.twitter.com/hVzqop0Hhu

— Khel Now (@KhelNow) February 23, 2025

2020-21 ISL playoffs

The Mariners played in the ISL for the first time in the 2020-21 campaign. This was infamously held behind closed doors in Goa because of the Covid-19 pandemic. Despite not having their fans behind them, the Antonio Habas-led side performed at a high level in that campaign.

They fought strongly for the ISL league shield title with Mumbai City, matching them almost throughout the course of the league phase. However, a costly loss to the Islanders in the end of the season saw them miss out on the shield title on goal difference after finishing the league phase on the same points as them. The Mariners were focused on impressing in the playoffs and faced a vibrant NorthEast United side in the semi-final.

After being held to a 1-1 draw in the first leg, Habas’ side roared back to get a compelling 2-1 win thanks to David Williams’ and Manvir Singh’s goals. They faced Mumbai City FC again in the final and took an early lead through Williams too. However, fate would not be on their side. Tiri scored an unfortunate own goal for the Kolkata side, while a late Bipin Singh goal allowed the Islanders to win the ISL double and leave hteir opponents with nothing to show.

2021-22 ISL playoffs

The 2021-22 ISL season was one filled with changes for the Mariners. They replaced Antonio Habas midway through the campaign, bringing in Juan Ferrando instead. That couldn’t really give them a huge boost in the race for the ISL league shield.

They finished in third place in the league phase, but that earned them a place in the ISL semi-final against a talented Hyderabad FC side. The Mariners were just not strong enough to withstand the Nawabs’ pressure in the first leg of the semi-final. Despite Roy Krishna giving them an 18th-minute lead, Hyderabad FC roared back to score three unanswered goals through Bart Ogbeche, Mohammed Yasir and Javier Siverio.

In the second leg, the Mariners were heavily frustrated by Hyderabad FC going into a defensive-first approach and piling all their bodies in the backline to frustrate them. Even though Roy Krishna’s 78th-minute goal helped them win the game, they lost the semi-final on a 3-2 aggregate to get eliminated from the playoffs in frustrating fashion.

2022-23 ISL playoffs

In their first full season under Juan Ferrando’s guidance, the Kolkata side might not have played the most glittering football – but they were at least effective. They had to deal with a plethora of gutting injury issues that derailed their charge for the ISL league shield, but Ferrando’s smart management helped them seal a third-place finish at the end of the initial stages. The Mariners faced off against Odisha FC in the knockout tie, but had little problem because of their home-field advantage.

They defeated the Juggernauts by a 2-0 margin thanks to goals from Dimitri Petratos and Hugo Boumous. The Mariners met a resilient Hyderabad FC side in the semi-final, with the Nawabs having the best defensive record in the league. Both the legs finished 0-0 in normal time, forcing extra-time and then a penalty shootout in the second leg in Kolkata.

The heroics of Vishal Kaith, however, helped Ferrando’s side book a place in the ISL final! Here, they met Bengaluru FC in a memorable encounter. Dimi Petratos gave the Mariners a 14th-minute lead, but the Blues roared back strongly. They equalized through Sunil Chhetri’s penalty before Roy Krishna scored against his former side in the second half.

However, the Mariners would not back down and equalized through Petratos’ penalty in the 85th minute. Both sets of players were too tired after that, which forced a penalty shootout. Here, the heroics of Vishal Kaith and clutch penalties from the players helped the Mariners win their first-ever ISL trophy. After the match, their owner Sanjeev Goenka gave the best gift for the fans by announcing that the club would be rebranded as ‘Mohun Bagan Super Giant’ from the 2023-24 season!

2023-24 ISL playoffs

Mohun Bagan created a very strong squad for the 2023-24 campaign, but things didn’t really go as smoothly as necessary. The team started to stutter under Ferrando, which caused him to be sacked right after the start of 2024. The Mariners brought back Antonio Habas as their head coach. He sparked an inspired turn in their form, as Mohun Bagan clinched the ISL shield title over Mumbai City in dramatic fashion.

They faced off against Odisha FC in the ISL semi-final, in which the first leg resulted in a 2-1 defeat for the Mariners. But they were not to be denied a place in the grand finale in Kolkata. Habas’ side produced a thrilling display in front of 62,000-strong at the Salt Lake Stadium in the second leg, getting a 2-0 win to get a berth in the final.

Here, they met Mumbai City FC and were the major favourites to do the ISL double. The Mariners played really well in the first half, with Jason Cummings giving them a 44th-minute lead as well. However, things went horribly wrong in the second half. Goals from Jorge Pereyra Diaz, Bipin Singh and Jakub Vojtus helped Mumbai City ruin the party in Kolkata to clinch the ISL title.

That is why Mohun Bagan will be even more determined to undo their wrongs from last season and win the ISL double at the end of the 2024-25 campaign.

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