On Saturday, Premier League clubs Manchester United and Crystal Palace will lock horns at London’s iconic Wembley Stadium in the final of this season’s FA Cup. Thanks to United's fan base in India, a lot of football-lovers will be watching the match, hoping their team wins one trophy at least.
After all, Crystal Palace is not going to be walkover. In fact, it wouldn’t really qualify as a real shock if they upset their more fancied opponents. Both sides have often struggled for form this season, and were separated by only ten places in the EPL.
In the process of tracking this contest, however, football fans may not be paying attention to another knockout final slated for the same evening. This one's being played closer home, though – in Guwahati.
Wake up, people. It's the final of India’s very own Federation Cup football tournament.
Three hours before the kick-off in London, Aizawl FC – tonight, India's Crystal Palace – will attempt to complete one of the country’s greatest ever underdog stories. Only the high-flying Kolkata team Mohun Bagan – like Manchester United, they didn't win the league – stand between Aizawl and a permanent place in Indian football folklore.
Kolkata giants against the Mizoram minnows
The contrast between the two makes this final special. The Mariners (as Mohun Bagan are fondly called) have won the competition a record 13 times, while the Mizoram club, formed in 1984, has reached the final in its debut appearance. The Kolkata club possesses the financial muscle and stature to attract the best Indian and foreign players available in the country, whereas Aizawl have to rely on a core of local, lesser-known Indian players.
In 2015, the Mariners were crowned champions of India by virtue of winning the I-League, which is Indian football’s topmost division. In the same year, Aizawl were crowned champions of Division Two of the I-League, thereby earning promotion to the main league to compete with the likes of Bagan for the first time in 32 years of existence.
It is quite extraordinary that Aizawl haven’t felt out of place among the big boys. Their tale is eerily similar to that of English club Wigan Athletic from 2013. Three years ago, financially-stricken Wigan made headlines around the world by beating Manchester City, England’s richest club, to lift the FA Cup – only to be relegated from the Premier League three days later.
From relegation to a cup final
The boys from Mizoram could soon follow Wigan, except in reverse. They were relegated from the I-League in April even though they had finished a place above DSK Shivajians, because the Pune club is protected from relegation (don't ask!). Now, Aizawl stand on the brink of a historic cup triumph.
There is never a dull moment in Aizawl’s brand of play. In their opening I-League fixture, the newly-promoted club showcased a short-passing approach to give Bagan a bit of a run-around (albeit in a losing cause) in a televised fixture in Kolkata. This instantly threw them into the limelight.
By displaying a flamboyant, fearless and, at times, even entertainingly naive brand of football (playing with two forwards against superior outfits, even in away matches), this modest club from the North-East has won the hearts of many. So much so that it has prompted a nationwide rallying cry for their relegation to be overturned on nothing but sentimental grounds.
Under the guidance of Jahar Das, the ex-Mohun Bagan youth coach who took over the reins from Spanish coach Manuel Retamero Fraile midway through the I-League season, Aizawl have rarely played with the mentality of a traditional underdog.
Fire in the belly
On the road to the final, the Mizo club first stunned I-League and defending Federation Cup champions Bengaluru FC by beating them both at home (2-1) and away (3-2), scoring five goals against the most solid defence in Indian football. It’s a result they had threatened to achieve all season against the champions, having gone down to a solitary goal in both the league games.
They then claimed the scalp of Sporting Clube de Goa in the semi-finals, earning an impressive 2-2 away draw following a goalless home leg and going through on the away goal rule.
Both these matches showed skill and character in abundance. Against Bengaluru at home, Aizawl were battered for most of the first half but refused to get overawed and eventually clinched a fantastic come-from-behind 2-1 victory. In the return leg, they simply outclassed the champions – a match they’ll likely savour for decades to come. In Goa too, they fended off late pressure from the home side as the coach’s brave decision to play with two forwards was rewarded with decisive away goals.
Their 23-year-old skipper David Lalrinmuana’s free kick in Bengaluru has stood out as the highlight of the tournament. Not far behind is forward Alfred Jaryan’s sensational back-flick assist to his strike-partner Joel Sunday in the same game. Aizawl’s story has single-handedly breathed new life into the Federation Cup, a tournament that has lost much of its sheen and continues to exist by force rather than by choice.
Bagan’s desire for revenge
But what are the chances of Aizawl's upsetting Mohun Bagan? On paper, slim, especially in the absence of their midfield engine and dead-ball specialist Lalrinmuana. The Indian Player of the Year nominee at the Football Players Association of India (FPAI) awards was suspended after picking up a needless red card in the dying moments of the semi-final.
It’s a huge blow to Aizawl’s chances ahead of the final. Players like the fleet-footed right winger Albert Zohmingmawia, Japanese midfielder Yuta Kinowaki, and the two firing forwards will need to raise their performances even further if the Mizo club has to stand a chance.
Besides, Mohun Bagan do not appear to be in the mood to muck around. Clearly hurting from relinquishing their I-League crown, the Mariners have steamrolled Salgaocar (7-2 on aggregate) and Shillong Lajong (5-0) on their way to the final.
In facing their final opponents, they’ll see a chance for revenge. It was a 1-2 defeat for an under-strength Bagan at Aizawl in late March – the club’s first loss of the season – which triggered its collapse in the league. A collapse that eventually cost them the title.
Since the Mariners last won the Federation Cup, the club’s closest rivals East Bengal have won the competition thrice – a statistic that doesn’t go down well with their fans. Bagan coach Sanjay Sen has a full-strength squad at his disposal and the fans will accept no excuses for a result other than a win.
Sure, England’s FA Cup final will showcase a superior quality of football and make for a better viewing experience. It’ll draw millions of Indian viewers to their TV sets. But at Guwahati, the final of India’s own cup competition may just throw up a more compelling tale than its English counterpart does.
Akarsh Sharma is a Delhi-based writer who tweets here.