Three ways Mehtab Singh can improve Mohun Bagan ahead of ACL 2

Mohun Bagan roped in Mehtab Singh on a five-year deal.

Mohun Bagan have sealed their first major signing of the 2025 summer window with the acquisition of Mehtab Singh from Mumbai City. The Mariners have decided to beef up their backline ahead of the 2025-26 AFC Champions League Two campaign, adding more experience to their defensive depth as well.

Mehtab arrives at Mohun Bagan with many years of experience, playing at the top of the Indian football scene. He spent over five years with Mumbai City FC, winning the ISL Championship Shield and the ISL Cup title multiple times. He made well over 100 appearances for the Islanders, proving himself as a reliable and proactive defender who neutralised the threat of many prominent foreign forwards as well.

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Singh will be facing stiff competition for places in the Mohun Bagan backline because of the defensive duo of Tom Aldred and Alberto Rodriguez, but his signing will definitely improve the overall quality of Mohun Bagan. Here, we look at three ways Mehtab Singh’s involvement can improve the Mariners.

Also Read: Mohun Bagan announce arrival of experienced defender Mehtab Singh ahead of ACL 2 campaign

3. More centre-back options

Jose Molina was quite reliant on the defensive duo of Tom Aldred and Alberto Rodriguez to hold down the fort for Mohun Bagan’s backline in the 2024-25 campaign. They were helped by Dippendu Biswas, with the youngster producing some solid performances, but there was a severe lack of options beyond that.

Deepak Tangri had to fill into a centre-back role at times, causing problems for the Mariners. The addition of an experienced defender like Mehtab, who has many international caps to his belt as well, will definitely enhance the number of options for Molina.

The gaffer can now actually afford to rest one of Aldred or Rodriguez from his defensive line without having to worry about a significant drop-off in quality. Considering how good Mehtab is with his distribution ability, he will also be able to help the Mariners play the ball off the back pretty well. His sturdy and reactive defensive nature will aid the Kolkata giants to frustrate their opposition attackers and hold together a reliable shape even without some foreigners in their backline.

2. Ability to accommodate foreigners in other positions

As Mohun Bagan had to often play both Aldred and Rodriguez as their centre-back duo in the 2024-25 Indian Super League (ISL) campaign, they were forced to sacrifice on foreigners in attacking areas. That is mostly because of the lack of experience among the Indian centre-back options, but that can now definitely change with the arrival of Mehtab.

The Indian centre-back has already won multiple ISL championships and knows what it takes to excel in the division as well with Mehtab potentially taking up a centre-back role, which can open up the opportunity for Molina to utilise that extra foreigner spot in an attacking position in the ISL.

That means the gaffer could potentially have three foreign players in the vital attacking positions, and can accommodate all three of the Australian forwards, Dimi Petratos, Jamie Maclaren and Jason Cummings. This can significantly boost Mohun Bagan’s goal-scoring threat because of the prolific nature of all three players. Mehtab’s inclusion greatly improves the chances of Molina to change things around in his Mohun Bagan set-up to make them more unpredictable and threatening on the attack.

1. Possible formation change

There is a good chance that Molina will look to change up the Mohun Bagan formation for their challenging matches in the AFC Champions League Two. Because of the quality of the opposition, it might be necessary for him to bulk up his defence by reverting to a three centre-back formation to help cope up with the pressure.

Fortunately for him, the arrival of Mehtab now makes it possible for him to change up the formation without any worries. Singh can easily slot into that right centre-back role with ease, accompanying the likes of Tom Aldred and Alberto Rodriguez in the three-man backline.

Mehtab is also experienced enough to take on foreign forwards,  having gained a lot of experience with his continental journey with Mumbai City and performances for India. Singh’s inclusion will help the Mariners create a mobile and proactive three-man defensive line that can help hold their own against opponents in the AFC Champions League Two.

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