Mohun Bagan vs Ahal FK: Kiyan shines, Cummings fails to create impact, and other talking points

The Mariners conceded a late goal in the 82nd minute to lose out on three points.

Mohun Bagan suffered a dismal 1-0 defeat in their first game of the 2025-26 AFC Champions League Two campaign against Ahal FK at the Salt Lake Stadium, Kolkata, on Tuesday (16 September 2025).

The Mariners lacked control against the sturdy Turkmenistan side and couldn’t convert some major chances they created in the second half. Ultimately, Ahal FK pounced on their opportunities as substitute Enver Annayev scored the winner in the 83rd minute to get a win for the visitors. A few major lessons were learned for the Mariners, as here we look at the takeaways from the game.

Also Read: Mohun Bagan stunned by Ahal’s late winner in AFC Champions League 2 opening fixture

5. Kiyan Nassiri makes most of opportunity to prove his value at Mohun Bagan

Fans wouldn’t be faulted for being surprised to see Kiyan Nassiri in the starting lineup against Ahal FK. He was a relatively surprise addition to the team, coming into the right-wing role because of Manvir Singh’s absence. However, Kiyan was actually able to succeed in that position and was a proactive figure in the opposition box. He did pretty well in terms of regaining possession and with his pressing, putting the opposition defenders under pressure.

Nassiri completed 9/13 attempted passes and he linked up really nicely with his teammates to move his side into the final third. He was a positive sign with his passing and overall work-rate, keeping things lively on the right and even creating a few promising chances from his area of the pitch. Things mellowed down on the right wing after he came off, showing his influence in the game.

4. Ahal FK’s patient and rigid approach pays off spectacularly

Ahal FK were quite aware that they would be put through the paces by a motivated and charged up Mohun Bagan squad in front of their home fans. That is why they needed to keep themselves grounded and maintain utmost discipline all game long.

The Turkmenistan side decided to tire out their opponents by making them push themselves in on them rather than applying a heavy-press system by themselves. They needed their goalkeeper Kakgerdi Berdiyev to make a few sharp saves, but their defensive line was really stubborn all game long.

The defenders Oraz Orazov, Bagtyyar Gurgenov and Hakumuhammet Bashimov were particularly proactive and commanding with their defensive effort, winning a number of duels to ruin Mohun Bagan’s attack.

Ahal put the pressure on the tired Mohun Bagan side in the second half with troublesome counter-attacks and one of those transitions were finished off expertly by Enver Annayev. It was a really smart and effective gameplan hatched by the Turkmenistan side, which paid off brilliantly to hand them three vital points.

3. Jose Molina’s substitutes give topsy-turvy results

Jose Molina was forced to accelerate his substitutes early into the second half after seeing the underwhelming performance from his players in the first half. He made a string of changes in the second half, which included a debut for Robson Robinho and also brought on Jamie Maclaren to add more power to his attacking line.

However, the final product was ultimately not decisive enough. Maclaren had a chance to score, but saw his effort from an awkward angle saved really well.

Thapa created a chance after coming on, which he saw wasted. Robinho also set up Sahal Abdul Samad’s chance late in the game, which also ended up being fluffed. Subhasish Bose looked to be lacking fitness, making a few errors late on against the opposition substitutes.

Ultimately, the Mohun Bagan substitutes were involved in some of their most promising chances, but came up short when it mattered the most. They couldn’t impact the result or stop their side from suffering the frustrating defeat.

2. Jason Cummings’ experiment falls flat for Mohun Bagan

Jose Molina opted to start Jason Cummings as his sole no.9 in the game against Ahal FK, opting to keep Jamie Maclaren and Dimi Petratos on the bench. Now, Cummings might be a centre-forward by nature, but he hasn’t exactly excelled in that position that often for Mohun Bagan.

That was a reason for Cummings being played in the no.10 or second striker role at Mohun Bagan in the 2024-25 season, bringing him all the success with goals and assists. However, Cummings failed to deliver as the no.9 in the key game against Ahal FK. He was isolated for the majority of the first half and had a shot blare over the bar.

He struggled to test defenders or make them lose their positioning when operating in the no.9 role. It’s telling that Cummings showcased a lot of improvement after Jamie Maclaren came on as a substitute, which allowed Jason to slot back into that second striker role.

Cummings had a few shots averted afterwards, but he at least looks at ease and most dangerous when playing in that free withdrawn role. Molina’s experiment to play him up-front without any real support failed to pan out and resulted in frustration all around.

1. Could a lack of genuine playmaker hurt Mohun Bagan’s ACL Two hopes?

Mohun Bagan have six quality foreign players in their squad, but their distribution of foreign talent is among forwards or defenders. There isn’t a single foreign midfielder in the squad, something that seemingly hurt them in the Ahal FK clash.

The Mariners opted to play Sahal Abdul Samad in the no.10 role, but the Indian international was not really able to create much and missed a big chance in the second half. A bigger issue, however, is that Mohun Bagan doesn’t appear to have a genuine playmaker who can pull the string in the right areas and play crucial passes to unlock rigid defensive lines.

They lacked that bit of magic with the final third passes against Ahal from their midfield, mostly because there wasn’t a creative playmaker to make passes that the normal players can’t. Even though Robson, Robinho or Jason Cummings can play off the striker, they aren’t natural playmakers and lack that innovativeness expected from a playmaker. The Mariners will hope that the lack of an inspiring creative figure doesn’t hurt them as the 2025-26 season progresses.

For more updates, follow Khel Now on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Youtube; download the Khel Now Android App or IOS App and join our community on Whatsapp & Telegram.