Why should Miguel Figueira have stayed at East Bengal FC after the ISL-winning campaign?

Miguel Figueira signs for Mohun Bagan Super Giant ahead of the 2026-27 season

Miguel Figueira has stunned the Red and Gold faithful by opting to join Mohun Bagan Super Giant before the start of the 2026-27 Indian Super League (ISL) campaign. The Brazilian midfielder rose to prominence in Indian football thanks to his heroics with East Bengal FC in the previous season, as he played a vital role in helping them win their first-ever ISL title.

Figueira proved to be a breath of fresh air for the ISL with his eye-catching performances for the Torchbearers. Despite his occasional emotional breakdowns, the Brazilian showed off his samba flair with a string of brilliant performances that helped East Bengal FC win crucial games and ultimately pip Mohun Bagan to the ISL championship.

However, Miguel had only agreed to a one-year contract with East Bengal FC, and he opted against re-signing with them for the near future. Instead, the Brazilian has opted to commit the ultimate act of betrayal by leaving the Red and Gold Brigade to join their arch-rivals, Mohun Bagan Super Giant, and will aim to help them win major trophies going forward.

This is something that has broken the hearts of many East Bengal FC fans, who held Figueira in such high regard last season. He has almost become the public enemy no. 1 with his latest actions for the East Bengal FC supporters, even though he’ll now get a bunch of new fans in the Mohun Bagan Super Giant faithful.

While Miguel probably can’t be faulted for trying a new experience in his career, one has to question exactly why he gave up his ideal position at East Bengal FC for a move to a club where he’ll be under even more pressure to perform consistently. Here, we look at why Miguel Figueira should’ve stayed at East Bengal FC rather than moving to Mohun Bagan Super Giant.

Familiarity and chemistry with teammates

Miguel Figueira made 12 appearances in the 2025-26 ISL campaign for East Bengal FC, and in the previous campaign, he was also able to create a nice little bond with most teammates at the club. The Brazilian midfielder spent enough time with his East Bengal FC teammates to be able to have enough chemistry and intuitiveness in being able to move the ball forward without pressure, knowing exactly where they’d be in the final third.

The 26-year-old midfielder definitely developed a great sense of familiarity with his East Bengal teammates, excelling in the link-up play as well as when it came to driving the ball forward on the transitions.

If he had stayed at East Bengal FC, Miguel would have been able to further polish the chemistry with his teammates and be able to produce arguably some even more thrilling attacking football for them.

Now, it’s almost like back to square one for him at Mohun Bagan Super Giant, where he’ll need some time to adapt to their playing system and have to spend many months before being able to bring a similar sense of chemistry with his newer teammates as he did at East Bengal.

System revolved around his strengths at East Bengal FC

At East Bengal FC, Miguel Figueira was given a pretty prominent role in the sense that a lot of their attacking moves revolved around him. Oscar Bruzon had allowed him utmost freedom in being able to move around wherever he had liked in the opposition box and urged the players to pass the ball to him on the transitions so that Miguel could be the driving factor to create chances for East Bengal FC.

The Red and Gold Brigade’s system structure revolved a lot around the Brazilian midfielder, who was able to play to his strengths as a result and got enough of the ball in the key areas in the final third to be able to create problems for opponents.

Miguel managed seven goal contributions (two goals, five assists) for East Bengal FC in the 2025-26 ISL campaign, and a lot of that was due to the kind of service he received from his teammates.

Now, he joins a Mohun Bagan Super Giant team where he might not be treated as the no. 1 star or someone that the entire system revolves around. The Mariners boast some prominent foreigners and top-quality Indian attacking players, which means Miguel’s game might be a bit more restricted than it was at East Bengal FC.

Stricter competition for places at Mohun Bagan

The good thing about Miguel Figueira’s position at East Bengal FC was that he had a pretty well-settled role in the team, where that no. 10 role was his to take whenever he was available. Last season, he was able to start in 11 of East Bengal’s 13 matches in their ISL-winning campaign, and that attacking midfielder role was his to take whenever he was fit enough for it.

That enabled Miguel to play without any fear, producing some excellent attacking football with his forward runs, dribbling, and creativity in the final third – ultimately enabling him to win the ISL Golden Ball award at the end of the season as well.

However, now he’ll be joining a Mohun Bagan Super Giant side where the sheer competition for places will be much higher than it was at East Bengal. As the Mariners boast a really stacked squad with many options in that attacking midfield role, including Sahal Abdul Samad as well.

Figueira will be under more pressure to consistently keep bringing positive numbers from that no. 10 role. He’ll have more demands on his shoulders when it comes to creating or scoring goals, which can cause the intensity to mount up on him. Figueira had a more comfortable situation going at East Bengal FC, but he’s now lost all that after his move to Mohun Bagan Super Giant.

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