We always felt we could beat any team, says MBSG defender Tom Aldred

Mohun Bagan Super Giant defender Tom Aldred said the club was always confident of beating any team in the ISL 2024-25 season. The Mariners completed an ISL double, as they lifted the League Shield and also won the ISL Cup. 

With 14 clean sheets to his name, Aldred played a key role in MBSG’s defense line as he racked up 79 clearances, 85 recoveries, 16 blocks, and 17 interceptions.

The defender scored two goals and provided one assist in the 26 matches he played for the club in the previous season.

“Obviously I’m very excited and delighted with it. I think there’s no doubt in my mind I wanted to continue with the club. Not just the success we had last season, but also the club itself and people at the club,” Aldred said to MBSG TV.

“After the season, my goal was to try and extend and obviously continue with the club. I’m excited; I’m looking forward to hopefully more success with the club,” he added.

Meanwhile, MBSG were stunned by NorthEast United FC at the start of the season in the Durand Cup final, and the Australian feels it was the turning point as they wanted to be relentless after that loss.

“When we lost in the Durand Cup final, that was a big moment because we knew that we were at the club to win trophies. We obviously didn’t get over the line in that one. And then we still had a bit of a rocky start and got a 0-3 defeat against Bengaluru FC. Since then we went on a run; maybe those were probably two points in the season where, first of all, we realized that when we play final games, we need to get over the line,” Aldred said.

“And secondly, that result was kind of the catalyst to obviously kick on. Every time we got beat, we went on a (winning) run, which is what good teams do if they get beat. They put it behind them, learned from it, and we kicked on, and we were able to do that. So at every defeat—I think we had two defeats in the season—we were able to go on a run and learn from it,” he added.

MBSG would want to carry the same form in the next season of the ISL.