Sergio Lobera hails Mohun Bagan players' spirit in getting gritty win over NorthEast United in rain-soaked ISL 2025-26 clash

The Mariners find themselves top of the table

Mohun Bagan were able to jump back to the top of the 2025-26 Indian Super League (ISL) table after their hard-fought 1-0 win over NorthEast United at the Indira Gandhi Athletic Stadium, Guwahati on Sunday (19 April, 2026).

Despite the game being impacted by a harrowing torrential rain, which resulted in the match being stopped for over 30 minutes, the first-half goal from Robson Robinho was enough to help the Mariners scrape their way to a key away win.

Sergio Lobera’s thoughts on performance and conditions

Sergio Lobera was really happy with the performance of his players in such adverse conditions.

He stated after the game: “This was a very, very important win. These points are crucial for us, and I think that I need to be happy with the effort of the players in this difficult scenario. For us today, to get three points is the most important thing – especially in terms of getting the three points in the conditions we got the three points – we need to be so happy.”

When asked about whether he substituted the foreign players and replaced them with domestic ones because of the Indian players adaptability to playing in such harsh conditions.

Lobera replied: “Finally, in the conditions of the game, we had some players who could compete better because they’re more suited to these conditions to compete in the best way. It’s not easy to make such decisions as a coach, but I’m really happy with the substitutions that I made.”

Mohun Bagan susaining pressure and plans for lengthy gap in games

Lobera was pleased with how his side sustained pressure from NorthEast United and held their own in the midfield battle despite missing Lalengmawia Ralte.

He stated: “Apuia helped us a lot in the midfield, and Alberto Rodriguez too. Hopefully, we can play with the full squad in the games ahead, but I feel the team managed the timings of the game really well.”

“We had chances to score the second goal, and the team was also smart when the conditions didn’t allow us to play in the way we wanted to play. We adapted quickly and took advantage to win the game,” he also added.

Upon being questioned on whether Mohun Bagan are now front-runners to win the ISL title, the Spaniard quipped: “Finally, in the conditions of the game, we had some players who could compete better because they’re more suited to these conditions to compete in the best way. It’s not easy to make such decisions as a coach, but I’m really happy with the substitutions that I made.”

Mohun Bagan’s next game is after a three-week gap against FC Goa on 9 May. Lobera was asked about how his side plans to spend this period, and he replied: “We need to think about the next game. Every match is different, as you can see today. We expected something else, and you are arriving here, and the weather totally changed the game. This was more like a water polo game than a football game.”

“We must try to adapt and put focus on the next game, and we need to focus on continuing to win games and help us get closer to our target,” he finished with.

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