FC Goa and Mohun Bagan played out a goalless draw in a friendly match at the Kishore Bharati Stadium on Monday morning. The game, which kicked off at 10 am, saw both teams enjoy periods of dominance but neither was able to find the back of the net.
According to sources, Mohun Bagan looked the stronger side in the first half, while FC Goa came back better in the second. Despite creating seven or eight opportunities, Bagan struggled to break into the opposition box with conviction, while Goa too could not capitalise on their moments in the final third.
Mohun Bagan head coach José Molina started with two of his foreign players – Jason Cummings and Tom Aldred – while FC Goa’s Manolo Márquez fielded all six of his overseas footballers: Iker Guarrotxena, Dejan Dražić, Pol Moreno, David Timor, Borja Herrera, and Javier Siverio.
Around the hour mark, Molina made his first set of substitutions, bringing on Subhasish Bose, Suhail Bhat, and Abhishek Suryavanshi for Abhishek Singh, Deepak Tangri, and Abdul Samad. Márquez, meanwhile, introduced their new signing Abdul Rabeeh in place of Seriton Fernandes in the second half.
Mohun Bagan opted not to risk Alberto Rodríguez, who is nursing a minor training injury. In his absence, Mehtab Singh combined effectively with Aldred in central defence. There was also relief for the Mariners as striker Jamie Maclaren, recently back from a back injury, featured in the final minutes. Molina deployed his attacking trio of Dimitri Petratos, Maclaren, and Robson Robinho for the last 10 minutes.
Robinho managed to create a late opening, but Suhail failed to convert. Goa came closest when Rabeeh missed from a rebound after Vishal Kaith parried away a Guarrotxena free-kick.
Both sides were keen to assess their preparations ahead of their respective AFC commitments. Mohun Bagan will open their AFC Champions League 2 campaign at home against Turkmenistan’s FK Ahal on September 16, while FC Goa will face Iraq’s Al-Zawraa at home on September 17.
Though the scorching heat and early kick-off made conditions difficult, both teams took positives from the workout, particularly in terms of game time for their footballers.