KOLKATA, INDIA: Mohun Bagan Super Giant (MBSG) pulled out one of the most extraordinary transfer moves in the history of the Indian Super League (ISL) when they signed Lallianzuala Chhangte from Mumbai City Football Club (MCFC) last week. Bagan convinced Mumbai to allow the India winger to leave on a free transfer despite him having a year left on his existing contract.
While it is unknown whether Bagan have rewarded Mumbai City for this generous gesture, it has been reported by KhelNow that Chhangte is set to earn INR 6.2 crore in his three-year deal with the Kolkata giants. This eases Mumbai City’s wage bill since the attacker was expected to earn INR 3.2 crore in his final year in Andheri.
In turn, the Islanders can be expected to use the freed-up wage to sign players ahead of the 2026-27 Indian football season, including the ISL. It is well known that Mumbai City found themselves in challenging conditions after their primary investor, City Football Group (CFG), divested their stake in late 2025. They are now run primarily by their founding owners, Ranbir Kapoor and Bimal Parekh.
Mohun Bagan are rebuilding their squad ahead of ISL 2026-27
Quite naturally, at a time of such financial duress, Mohun Bagan’s offer to take Chhangte off their books would have been welcome. While the 28-year-old was an important member of their squad, and was also given the captain’s armband, the harsh reality was that Mumbai City would have found the going tough had his immense wage demands remained on their books.
Both sides appear to have enjoyed making this deal. Mohun Bagan are in the midst of a rebuild, after signing Panagiotis Dilmperis as their head coach from Punjab FC. They have made their intentions clear ahead of the upcoming ISL season by inking deals with stalwarts such as Rahul Bheke, Samir Zeljkovic, Dejan Drazic, Sayan Banerjee and Miguel Ferreira already.
The Mariners poached the latter two from their arch-nemesis and cross-town neighbours East Bengal, which goes to show that they are willing to take no prisoners in their attempt to regain their ISL crown. They relinquished the title to East Bengal on goal difference in 2025-26, and the massive nature of this rebuild shows how invested they are in becoming champions of India again.
What will Lallianzuala Chhangte bring to Mohun Bagan?
Chhangte’s arrival will add glamour to the Mariners‘ ranks, although the Mizo’s returns have been far from impressive in recent years. Despite being one of the highest-rated players on the Indian circuit, Chhangte scored just ten goals across 37 ISL matches for Mumbai City over the last two seasons. His best came for the Islanders in 2022-23, when he was involved in 16 goals in 22 games.
Mumbai will certainly be happy to get Chhangte off their books, especially owing to his diminishing returns. The wage bill freed by his departure should now allow them to embark on a rebuild of their own, in order to challenge the Mariners. Mohun Bagan, on the other hand, appear to have received the short end of this deal, which was constructed solely on Chhangte’s reputation, not form.
For a man whose primary role is to score and assist, the fact that Chhangte has netted just nine times in 56 appearances for the Indian men’s national team raises serious questions. Fans should not be surprised to find him operating solely on the prestige of his name for Mohun Bagan at the Salt Lake Stadium. Expect Bagan to rue their mistake – which is a rather costly one – while Mumbai City celebrate.
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