ISL Musings: Mohun Bagan win somehow, East Bengal win in style, a full house for Kerala Blasters again

          Manvir Singh scores for Mohun Bagan vs Chennaiyin Abhijit Addya/ FS Media Pro / ISL
          • Aaditya Narayan
          Oct 27, 2026, 09:33 AM ET

          The third game week of the Indian Super League saw a bunch of close games, and one completely one-sided fixture. Mohun Bagan won again but didn't play well. East Bengal won again and played really well (again). Oh, and hello again, Kochi crowd. We muse on GW3 of the ISL:

          East Bengal purr in attack

          They're defending champions and they're showing why. East Bengal have scored nine times in two games to open the defence of their ISL title, and they are looking really, really good.

          If it was the Edmund Lalrindika and David Lalhlansanga goal in the opener against Churchill Brothers, it was the Ake Loba show in the second game against Inter Kashi. He scored twice, assisted once, and was a threat throughout the game, as East Bengal ran rings around Kashi's all-Indian squad.

          Lukasz Zwolinski and Chris Ikonomidis made telling contributions off the bench too, as the champions showed off their luxuries.

          Yes, the fixture list has been a bit kind at the start for them, but you can only play what's in front of you, and thus far, East Bengal have dispatched what's been in front of them.

          Fresh start brings the crowds back to Kochi

          40,014 people packed the stands at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Kochi, as the Kerala Blasters' fans returned, with new optimism and hope, with new owners bringing a fresh start for the club.

          They played a fairly thrilling game against Mumbai, certainly one of those enjoyable 0-0s that don't feel tedious. However, they faded as the game went on, as the effects of not having a proper pre-season began to show in the fitness levels of some of their players. They still played some really good stuff, and Ashley Westwood must have seen signs that encouraged him enough, but at the end of the day, this is a results business, and the Blasters have only one win to show for their efforts in the opening three games.

          This honeymoon period will end soon, though, and the Blasters need to start picking up those wins soon.

          Mohun Bagan win, but need big improvement

          Mohun Bagan win 1-0. Nothing to see here, just another day of ISL football. Except... there's quite a bit to see from this one.

          In fact, Bagan perhaps didn't deserve to win that game. Chennaiyin FC had 25 shots, a few of them golden opportunities to score that were squandered. They saw Vishal Kaith make a couple of big saves and they saw Ramon Tanque flash wide from close range with big, big chances.

          Inevitably, though, the goal came for Bagan as some superb work from Liston Colaco down the left saw him float in a cross for Manvir Singh, after confusion between the Chennaiyin goalkeeper and defenders, and Manvir chested home into an empty net.

          Mohun Bagan won this one, but they won't win too many playing the way they did for a bulk of that game. Or, so we think, because when have Mohun Bagan ever cared for logical conclusions?

          Yet another late, late show for Punjab

          If football matches ended without stoppage time, Punjab FC would have two points in three games. In reality, they now have seven in three. The latest addition came at Fatorda against Churchill Brothers on Sunday evening, as Sanathoi Singh slotted home a late winner to make the score 3-2.

          It was a pulsating game, particularly in the first half, as Punjab led twice, but got pegged back both times. First, it was a Raphael Messi Bouli penalty, and then an Alfred Planas strike from close range, but on both occasions, Punjab saw Sebastián Gutiérrez equalise - his brace makes it three goals in three games for him this season.

          The decisive moment had a touch of controversy about it too, as Messi Bouli may have used an arm to control the ball before slipping Sanathoi in one-on-one with Sayad Kadir. The finish, though, was unerring, as Punjab stayed with the big boys on top of the league.

          Ajaraie's rare off day

          NorthEast United do remain top of the league on goal difference, but they will lament two points thrown away in Bhubaneswar against Odisha FC. Sometimes, it's too simplistic to put a result down to just one performance, but in NorthEast's case, it's easy to do so. When Alaaeddine Ajaraie plays well, NorthEast play well. When he has rare off days like this one, where do they find inspiration from? Ajaraie had four shots in this game, the first three didn't really do much to threaten Hrithik Tiwari in the Odisha goal. The fourth, though, was the moment.

          In the 95th minute of the game, NorthEast were gift-wrapped a present, as Stephen Eze inexplicably threw an arm at the ball while defending a corner. Penalty to NorthEast, surely the win to NorthEast? Ajaraie's strike had Tiwari beaten, but it slammed onto the post to the goalkeeper's left, as NorthEast were left licking their wounds.

          This was two points dropped, and they were dropped by the man that has won them so many points on his own.