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#4 East Bengal (5/10)
I would have rated them a few points lower if only the I-League campaign was taken into account, but finishing as the Super Cup runners-up got them those extra points.
East Bengal bottled up and choked in the final stages of the I-League like they have been doing for the past 14 years.
This season though the equation was crystal clear for them, with two games remaining, they had to win both the games to be crowned champions.
None of the other teams had a clear scenario like that, but the Khalid Jamil coached side drew both their games to finish fourth in the league. Off the field, issues have been plaguing the Red and Golds for some time now, and it had an effect in the I-League too.
East Bengal had a decent run in the Super Cup, reaching the finals of the tournament, but choked in the finals as they bowed down to a superior Bengaluru FC.
Khalid Jamil’s tactics this season has been questionable as his defensive-minded strategy seemed to backfire on most occasions.
His spat with Technical Director Subhas Bhowmick had a mental effect on the players during the Super Cup which eventually resulted in the club's defeat in the finals.
#3 Mohun Bagan (5/10)
While it was raining sorrow in the East Bengal half of town, it wasn’t all rosy for the Mariners, who were riding a storm in the middle of the I-League.
Bagan started the League in a good way winning their first game away and then defeating East Bengal in the derby, but then everything seemed to go south as Sony Norde got injured and left for his homeland, Sanjoy Sen resigned in dramatic fashion, after having had shoes and chairs hurled at him, some of the fans even spat on him.
After Sen’s resignation, Shankar Lal took over the reigns of a sinking ship and eventually managed to anchor it on shore, by finishing the I-League above their arch-rivals East Bengal. Bagan made some crucial mid-season singings in Cameroon Watson and Akram Moghrabi, both had a role in ensuring the Mariners stayed in the title race till the end of the season.
Bagan had a relatively easy Super Cup campaign till the semi-finals, as they faced only I-League sides in the tournament, but eventually bowed down to the Champions Bengaluru FC.
