Goal.com India Special: A Mid-Season Analysis Of The I-League Table

			Pts	GP	W	D	L	GS	GA
1		Dempo Sports Club	27	13	9	0	4	32	12
2		East Bengal	26	13	8	2	3	25	12
3		Churchill Brothers SC	26	12	8	2	2	22	9
4		Mohun Bagan	24	13	7	3	3	25	17
5		Pune FC	22	13	6	4	3	21	18

Dempo SC

East Bengal meanwhile have started the season like a seasoned marathon runner, never out of the top pack of teams and looking like a unit with plenty in reserve. The Red and Gold Brigade are a tight defensive unit, which is ably led by Uga Okpara and have plenty of creativity in midfield. Tolgay Ozbey upfront has always looked capable of scoring a goal at all times and Baljit Sahni and Penn Orji have been his main aides in attack. Trevor Morgan’s side has good depth and should be there or thereabouts when the season reaches its climax.

Though Churchill Brothers haven't missed Odafa Okolie with Henry Antchouet ably stepping in, they have failed to raise the bar of their performance when the opportunity to take a lead on top of the table was presented. The Goans might well have been on top if their match against Pailan had not been postponed. However the club’s biggest worry is that with Henry off to the African Cup of Nations, who will step up to the plate and score the goals to lead the team to victory. Primarily the club has relied on their front two for goals and needs players like Beto, Lalrindika Ralte and Mohammed Rafi to step up.

Mohun Bagan have been another club having a topsy-turvy season. Armed heavily upfront, the Mariners main undoing has been their laughable defence which has often left their own fans squirming and nervous whenever the ball is played into their half. Anwar Ali’s form has slipped dramatically, Simon Storey being a disaster and new recruit Daniel Zeleny injured, it has only got worse for Subrata Bhattacharya’s side, who have won only once in their last four games but still find themselves just 3 points behind the leaders. If they can sort out their defence and keep their strikers fit, the Kolkatan outfit will have every chance of winning the title.

Much was expected of Pune FC when the season started. However injuries to Subrata Paul and in particular, Mandjou Keita really hurt the team during the early stages of the season, and Jeje Lalpekhlua was often left isolated upfront. The club found it hard to score goals, which also affected their form at the back. The return of their Guinean striker though has sparked the Red Lizards into form as the club has been unbeaten for seven straight games. Just five points adrift from the top, a title challenge cannot be discounted. The addition of N.S.Manju in the January transfer window shall add more steel in the back-line.

			Pts	GP	W	D	L	GS	GA
6		Prayag United	21	13	5	6	2	22	14
7		Salgaocar SC	19	13	5	4	4	18	14
8		Air India	19	13	6	1	6	19	21
9		Shillong Lajong FC	16	13	4	4	5	10	21

Prayag United

The defending champions Salgaocar SC seemed to be suffering from a chronic bout of second season syndrome at the start of the season, as the spring in their step, which was so evident last season, was missing. The club has however gradually recovered their form and after three wins in four games, is finally in the top half of the table. Karim Bencherifa’s side though need Chidi Edeh to perform in a more consistent manner and also need more goals from midfielders as Edeh and Ryuji Sueoka have had to share all the goal-scoring burden. between themselves.

Few expected Air India to be this high up the table mid-way through the season. Wins against Chirag United, Sporting Clube de Goa, Pailan Arrows, HAL Bangalore show that the Airmen have beaten teams alongside whom they were expect to struggle, and that has made the big difference to their season. Their other two wins have come against Salgaocar SC early in the season and Dempo recently, when both the clubs were going through a lean phase. This opportunistic streak instilled by Santosh Kashyap in the team and the form of players like Manandeep Singh, Sandesh Gadkari and Lamine Tamba, has ensured they do not suffer from the same jittery nerves of last season.

After their strong performances in the Federation Cup, many expected Shillong Lajong to set the I-League on fire. The only I-League top flight club from the north-east have not done that, but they have still have had a decent first half of the season. And while the odd thumping against clubs like Churchill Brothers and Dempo SC can be expected, they have largely been a solid outfit. Their biggest problem this season has been getting the goals upfront. With John Menyongar moving into midfield, Christopher Iyikwobe, James Gbilee and Seikhohau Tuboi have not delivered the goods upfront. While the Nigerian Christopher has shown some sparks of form recently, Tuboi and Gbilee also need to step-up if Pradhyum Reddy’s side are not to be drawn into the relegation battle.

			Pts	GP	W	D	L	GS	GA
10		Sporting Clube de Goa	14	13	3	5	5	21	26
11		Mumbai FC	14	13	4	2	7	17	23
12		Chirag United Club Kerala	11	13	3	2	8	12	19
13		Pailan Arrows	7	12	0	7	5	5	17
14		HAL Bangalore	2	13	0	2	11	9	35

Khalid Jamil pulled off a miracle last season, when he took Mumbai FC to a mid-table finish. He will need to do something similar this season if the Mumbai-based club is to avoid relegation, which might put the club’s existence into question. Having yet again assembled their squad at the last moment, nobody can blame the coach for their problems. The goals have been coming fitfully while there have been too many concentration lapses at the back. With Chirag United rapidly improving, this might prove to be a really long season for Mumbai FC.

With Pailan Arrows exempt from the relegation process, Chirag United Kerala currently occupies one of the two relegation spots in the league.. However no one who has seen the club play can explain why they are in such a situation. Playing some of the most eye-pleasing football in the country at the moment, the young squad has faltered in converting their chances into goals. However Nizam Packeer Ali’s side has shown some improvement on that account lately and will take heart from their win against fellow relegation contenders Mumbai FC.

The Pailan Arrows, formerly known as the Indian Arrows, have struggled in their new avatar. Shorn of the services of stars of last season like Jeje Lalpekhlua, Jewel Raja and Lalrindika Ralte, the team has really struggled to score goals, having managed a measly five all season, which has seen them draw seven and win none of their games so far. As they are protected against relegation, one would like to see the young outfit play more freely and convert some of their draws into wins. Their matches have been boring to the core and understandably so, as they are seen mostly in their own half.

With two points and having conceded an amazing 35 goals, there is not much to be said about HAL Bangalore. They are half-way into division 2 already and would need a whole new team to even have a chance of survival. In a very evenly contested league this season, HAL have been a disappointment to say the least.