Aizawl FC’s historic league victory in the tenth edition of the I-League had its highs and lows as the men from Mizoram secured a maiden National League triumph.

The Mizos had very few off-days as Khalid Jamil had made them hard to beat and breakdown as a 1-0 win over Mohun Bagan in the penultimate match proved to be their most decisive win of the season. They earned the point required of them to clinch the I-League on the final day of the season.

Here are the numbers from their pathbreaking season:

0

Number of goals conceded by Aizawl FC in the second half of their home campaign or the final nine of all the 18 halves of football played at the Rajiv Gandhi Stadium in Maulpui.

The last team to score at an Aizawl home game were Bengaluru FC on February 15, when Sunil Chhetri scored an Indian record 90th league goal in the 45th minute of the first half to bring the defending champions level on terms with the home team who took a surprise lead through Brandon Vanlalremdika.

Since then, the highlanders have shut out BFC in the second half and East Bengal, Chennai City, Mumbai FC and Mohun Bagan to register four consecutive clean sheets and victories.

1

The highest number of goals that Aizawl conceded in a single home match. In their nine home matches, they conceded only thrice and never more than once.

Churchill Brothers, Bengaluru and Shillong Lajong are the only teams that scored at the Rajiv Gandhi Stadium this time around as Aizawl was truly a fortress for the home team.

2

Aizawl never went longer than three matches without a win in this season and that is a big measure of their stability. The Mizos’ longest winless streak this year was a paltry two, first letting a 2-0 lead slip against Minerva Punjab in Ludhiana before going down 1-0 to Bengaluru in the dying minutes of the game.

2

Two separate occasions on which Khalid Jamil’s men went on a three game winning streak or more. Continuity in the squad selection and defensive solidity combined to give Aizawl a blitz of points during the season.

The first run came during gameweeks 2-4 where they defeat Minerva, Lajong and Mumbai 1-0, 2-1 and 1-0 to sit second in the table with their last victory coming away from home.

They betterered this sequence later in the season with three wins at home and one away when they toppled East Bengal, CCFC, Mumbai and DSK Shivajians in a row.

3

The lowest number of goals at home this season, of course, goes to Aizawl. They outran and out-defended their opponents with the backing of a raucous home crowd in Salem Veng.

The best performers in the league in this aspect, ahead of Bengaluru (4), Bagan and East Bengal (7 apiece) at a rate of a goal conceded every 270 minutes at home.

3

The number of own goals that went in for Aizawl, out of a total of 24 scored. These three goals were crucial as well, fetching a total of 4 points for Jamil’s men as Gurwinder Singh, Loveday Enyinnaya and Bob Nongkhlaw were the unfortunate men to put one through their own net, for Aizawl’s cause.

6

The number of goals that Aizawl scored in the opening half of matches this season. Only a quarter of their strikes came in the opening period of games but Khalid’s “wear-and-tear” philosophy was effective eventually.

Also, the number of goals conceded and the number of points lost by Aizawl in the last 15 minutes of matches. Their policy of going “hell-for-leather” in the final stages of games meant that they were susceptible to defensive lapses at their own end.

8

The number of goals that they did manage to score between the 75th minute and the final whistle of games this campaign.

With Mumbai FC, Khalid’s teams had developed a reputation of fighting till the very end. Superior fitness and determination showed as Aizawl scored a fair few in the dying minutes of matches.

8

Games won at home by Aizawl, out of a possible nine. They were brilliant in Mizoram, beating all the teams but Bengaluru FC.

9

Number of different goalscorers for Aizawl FC. Kamo Stephane Bayi, the young Ivorian centre-forward top scored with six while Brandon and Dan Mawia chipped in with three goals each. Apart from Bayi, Mahmoud Al-Amna was the other foreigner to register for Aizawl with two strikes.

In all, Indian players scored 13 goals for Aizawl, Jayesh Rane also pitching in with two.

10

Points out of their total 37, that Aizawl won in the final 15 minutes, once again, the highest in the league. The most riveting of these was the 1-0 victory over Mohun Bagan with Zotea scoring in the 83rd minute to give them a super-important win in the context of the title race.

11

A total of 11 wins in the league, higher than Bagan and East Bengal who had ten apiece. The only team that the highlanders failed to beat were Bengaluru FC, who took a maximum four points off them.

14

Total goals conceded by Aizawl throughout the season, second only to Bagan who let in 12. The centre-back pairing of Zotea and Kingsley Obumneme stood firm with Albino Gomes providing a safe pair of hands between the sticks.

In all, Aizawl notched up eight clean sheets.

21

Number of seasons since the National Football League championship, India’s first recognised national football league started. This was the 10th edition of the I-League.

Aizawl were the first team from the Northeast region to win a national league in the 22nd season of Indian league football.

25

The number of points that they gained in Aizawl, tied with Bagan for the best home record in the league. Accounted for more than two-thirds of their points in the final standings.

26

Total number of points that they accrued against the bottom five, out of a possible 30, showing remarkable consistency, dropping only four. Bagan and East Bengal who earned 21 out of their 30 were next best in this regard.

For all of their heroics against East Bengal, Mohun Bagan and Bengaluru, it was the smaller teams which were at the receiving end of Aizawl’s efficiently as they did the double over Churchill Brothers, DSK and Mumbai. Only a 2-2 draw at Minerva and 2-0 loss at CCFC, both newcomers, dented what was a perfect campaign against the league’s bottom half.

1.25

Mohun Bagan’s Sony Norde, their Haitian star, costs his club Rs. 2.2 crore every season, while Aizawl’s entire budget was Rs. 1.25 crore. And it doesn’t end here. Their transfer budget was around 20 times lesser than Mohun Bagan and East Bengal

Who says money wins you titles?