The voice of disbelief was heard almost as soon as Bipin Singh hit the back of Amarinder Singh's trap. ATK Mohun Bagan, the impenetrable fortress of Antonio Habas, who had been built over several seasons, scored his fifth goal in the 52nd minute. It wasn't possible, it just... didn't happen.
Mumbai City was claiming its own identity as ATK Mohun Bagan revealed itself to the world of Indian football. Yes, it was a different ATKMB side, it was Antonio Habas 2.0. Still, no one expected what was happening on Fatorda's pitch.
Even after beating FC Goa 3-0 in their opening game, City never looked to be able to achieve such a result. In fact, there was a sober acknowledgment that the Goa city was poor rather than great. The exploitative gap remained as Des Buckingham was yet to make an impression of his style, producing Lobera-Ball that won the league the previous year.
This was noticeable in City's second game - Bart Ogbeche, the shrewd old forward, came back to trouble his former side, exploiting a defense that was not yet simultaneously gelled. Hyderabad FC emerged victorious 3-1 and Buckingham looked disappointed. Nevertheless, as do the best managers, the Mumbai boss equated the club's victory and defeat, noting the latter that he was pleased with aspects of his side's performance.
Buckingham needed to continue the work he had been doing since his appointment.
What a payoff it was! Buckingham made only two changes in his side - bringing in Mandar Rao Desai at full-back and bringing in Vikram Pratap Singh as a right-sided forward. There was already a lot of talk about the latter after the performance that grabbed headlines for the Indian junior teams. Said that when Vikram turned into a performance stunner the chatter spread without any publicity.
The 19-year-old's performance was a perfect representation of the new generation of Indian footballers - ignorant of the big stage, all swagger and trickery underpinned by the relentless energy of the youngsters. His opening target was a perfect microcosm - where most of the youngsters would let fly as a deflected cross fell at their feet in the box, Vikram remained calm, and almost imperceptibly, shoved the ball into the net between Amarinder's legs. Was.
His second was very lucky but a reward for the qualities his coach liked. The positional awareness to keep up with the game, the hunger to reach the slightly overhit cross that flipped through his hand and into the net. Throughout the match, Vikram remained a threat forever - Deepak Tangri, Subhasish Bose, Prabir Das, Liston Colaco all tried to stop him and failed.
While Vikram was deservedly grabbing all the headlines, what pleased Buckingham more was the brilliance of his entire Indian contingent. Bipin Singh's energy was never questioned, but his decision-making ability was spot on throughout the game. Apuia Ahmed fits like a glove with Jahouh, who uses the ball wisely while remaining healthy in position. Amey Ranade, Mandar Rao Desai and Rahul Bheke knew when to press on defense and when to play keep-ball.
It wasn't just Lobera-Ball that led Mumbai City to their maiden title last season... it was an improvement. Buckingham has added a tweaked gegenpress to a side that was already comfortable on the ball. Ironically, it only took him three games. It might not be all that surprising for the 36-year-old in his 19th season of coaching.
Buckingham places a great value on identity and representation, having previously used stories from Māori legends to unite New Zealand junior squads coming from nine different regions. The British have carried that respect for cultures to India, given that even though they have players from different parts of the world, they represent Mumbai, they represent their families, they pull together.
A 5-1 win over ATK Mohun Bagan was not just a statement of intent, it was Mumbai City's unveiling of its new identity. Was it just tiki-taka? Was it a relentless gegenpress? Unsurprisingly, it seems that both. What's further troubling the rest of the league is that Buckingham is supporting all that excellence on the pitch with unity on the pitch.
However, like all the ink spilled on ATK Mohun Bagan after two ATK Mohun Bagan performances were prematurely coronated, one cannot do the same for Mumbai. Even after a 5-1 defeat, the beauty of football remains, it cannot be said for sure what will happen. What is certain though, is that the Indian Super League is set to witness a titanic battle for the league title.
Perhaps this is the identity Buckingham and City are really striving for – not Tiki-Taka, not Gjenpress – but champions.