Sergio Lobera calls for major improvement in Mohun Bagan's game despite thrilling comeback win over Punjab FC

Sergio Lobera’s squad will face NorthEast United FC next on April 19

Mohun Bagan were able to get back to winning ways in style in the 2025-26 Indian Super League (ISL), picking up a thrilling 3-2 win over Punjab FC at the Salt Lake Stadium, Kolkata on Sunday (12 April, 2026). Despite going behind twice in the match, the Mariners rode off goals from Jamie Maclaren as well as super-subs Sahal Abdul Samad & Jason Cummings to get all three points.

Despite seeing his side get a big win to move one point behind league-leaders Mumbai City, Sergio Lobera was displeased with what he saw in the game. After the match, he stated: “I need to analyse this as a coach in a professional way. Finally, we are winning and everything is amazing but we are in the wrong way. If we play like this, it’ll be difficult to win the league – especially at home.

“I’m happier with the way we played against BFC and Jamshedpur than we did today. I’m happy with the effort of the players, and it’s three important points for us to try to get over the target, but I need to think about solutions as a coach. I cannot be happy, but the best thing today is the result,” he also added.

Conceding goals cheaply and impact made by substitutes

When asked if he’s worried about his side’s defensive work after conceding two cheap goals in the game.

Lobera explained: “Another good thing about today is we scored three goals. It’s not about not conceding; it’s about dominating the game, but we didn’t dominate the game today, and the opponents had clear chances. One of the best players in the team was our goalkeeper, and when these things happen, you have to think as a coach. I think it’s an important win, but as a coach, I cannot be happy at all because I need to work a lot on some things, and we need to improve.

“We conceded two goals, but we could’ve conceded more. We had clear-cut chances before scoring the third goal, but we didn’t dominate the game, and we need to be brave in playing at home. During some phases, the opponent dominated us and had big chances. We need to analyse really well, and I have a lot of work to do. It’s not about the players, I can’t speak badly about them because the players coming from the bench did well and badly. We need to improve a lot if we want to win the league. I need to be more demanding with the players. I don’t want to be excited as we got three important points, I must do more things as a coach and show the people that we need to improve,” he further quipped.

Lobera had big praise for the impact made by Sahal and Cummings in helping the Mariners get the comeback win, saying: “I’m very happy for them because they deserve this. It’s not easy to score when you don’t get regular opportunities to play. But to manage difficult moments when you’re not playing, but the coach gives you an opportunity and the way they came to the pitch, I’m really happy with. These kinds of players have a lot of quality, they didn’t get a lot of opportunities, but they made an impact today. I’m very happy for the team, but especially with them.”

Feeling Apuia’s absence and Manvir Singh’s early substitution

When asked if he felt that Lalengmawia Ralte’s absence caused Mohun Bagan to struggle in the midfield battle.

Lobera answered: “Obviously, we know how important Apuia is for us – he’s a very important player with and without the ball. But I don’t think I’m doing my job well if I find an excuse for missing one player.

“He’s an important player for us, but we need to do better even when Apuia isn’t in the team. Today, the substitutions for me changed the game, and I have this option; maybe other opponents have this option. Apuia is important for us, but it’s not an excuse for the way we played today,” he also added.

Finally, Lobera insisted that he’s having no problems with Manvir Singh after substituting him early on following Alberto Rodriguez’s injury blow.

He stated, “Manvir is an amazing professional and amazing player. He’s very smart and knows the reason for my decision perfectly. I wanted to use four foreign players; I had a few doubts before choosing the first XI for this game.

“Today, with two centre-back foreigners or only with one. When Alberto Rodriguez’s injury happened, I wanted to play with three foreign attackers. Obviously, it’s not easy for him, but he understood my decision well,” the Spaniard finished off with.

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