NorthEast United FC are top of the Indian Super League table as of 19 October 2026. The Highlanders began their 2026-27 season with a 1-0 win over Mohun Bagan Super Giant, then beat Kerala Blasters FC 4-1 in Guwahati on Sunday. Two wins from two games give them six points, five goals scored and one conceded. A goal difference of plus four keeps them ahead of Bengaluru FC, who also have six points, as the official ISL standings show.
For a club that has swung between promising runs and hard seasons since 2014, it is a welcome start. It does not make NorthEast United title favourites. Two matches is a small sample in a league that tests teams over months. The real question is whether the Highlanders can turn early form into the steady results needed to win their first ISL league title.
Two wins, two different tests
The opener against Mohun Bagan was tight. Goalkeeper Gurmeet Singh made important saves as the visitors pushed forward, and Alaaeddine Ajaraie had a long-range goal ruled out for offside. Jithin MS, who came on at the start of the second half, settled it in the second minute of stoppage time, as the official ISL match report records. Mohun Bagan later picked up their first ISL win of the campaign, a sign that one early result does not define either team’s season.
Sunday’s win over Kerala was a different kind of game. Kerala set up with five defenders under head coach Ashley Westwood, yet NorthEast still found space behind them. Ajaraie opened the scoring by running onto a long ball from Eneko Satrustegui and rounding the goalkeeper. Antonio Moyano doubled the lead before half-time after a defensive error. Kerala got back into the match when Momo Yansane finished a chance created by Adrian Luna’s backheel, making it 2-1. NorthEast restored their two-goal lead with a curling finish from Ajaraie, who again benefited from a defensive lapse, and CK Aman added the fourth. The official match report points to the Highlanders’ movement in the attacking third and their use of direct balls.
Taken together, the two games showed a team that can survive a tense contest against a major opponent and one that can create and score from several positions. A title challenge needs both.
A club with a long road behind it
NorthEast United were founded in 2014 to represent the eight states of the Northeast in the ISL. The idea has always carried meaning beyond results. The club gives players from a football-rich region a place at the top level of Indian football, and it gives supporters across those states one badge to follow.
The league record has been uneven. NorthEast reached the semi-finals for the first time in 2018-19, then finished third in 2020-21 and made the playoffs again. Poor seasons followed, including one in which they ended bottom of the table. Things began to improve under Spanish coach Juan Pedro Benali, who joined in May 2023. The club finished seventh in 2023-24, then climbed to fourth in 2024-25 with 38 points. That earned a first playoff place in three seasons, but the run ended with a 2-0 home defeat to Jamshedpur FC in Shillong.
The most recent league season brought a step back. In 2025-26, a shortened campaign of 13 matches, NorthEast finished ninth with 16 points. This start is therefore less a continuation of steady progress than a recovery after a disappointing year.
The Durand Cup has been kinder. In 2024 the Highlanders came from two goals down against Mohun Bagan in the final, drew 2-2 and won on penalties, taking the first trophy in the club’s history. They kept the cup in 2025 with a 6-1 win over Diamond Harbour FC, becoming the first side to defend the title since 1991, as the ISL’s coverage of the successive triumph noted.
Cup success and league success are different tasks, though. A knockout tournament rewards a team for handling a few high-pressure matches. A league season keeps testing the squad’s depth and its response to setbacks. NorthEast have shown they can win trophies. Winning the ISL would mean holding that level over a much longer stretch.
The coach, the plan and the players
Benali’s contract runs to the end of the 2026-27 season, and he has been in charge for both Durand Cup wins and the 2024-25 playoff run. The early evidence of how this team plays is limited to two matches, but the pattern is clear. NorthEast like to move quickly into space behind the back line, use long passes to get there and stretch the pitch with width.
Ajaraie is the central figure. The Moroccan forward won the ISL Golden Boot in 2024-25, returned this season after a year away on loan, and has started with two goals against Kerala. His runs behind defences and his finishing give the team a clear attacking outlet. Opponents now have more reason to focus on him, so the side cannot let one player carry too much of the scoring.
Jithin MS may matter just as much over a full season. His late winner against Mohun Bagan showed his timing, and against Kerala he gave the Highlanders attacking width. He can pull defenders wide and open room for Ajaraie, but consistency in the final third will count as much as his best moments.
Moyano’s goal showed the value of contributions from midfield. A title contender cannot rely on its main striker to settle every match, and goals from midfielders and wide players make an attack harder to predict. Aman took his chance with the fourth goal against Kerala, and now needs to show he can influence games beyond one good night. Satrustegui’s long pass for the opener added another way to get behind a high defensive line.
At the back, Gurmeet’s saves against Mohun Bagan helped protect the win. One goal conceded in two matches is encouraging, but opponents will study how NorthEast attack and look for chances on the counter.
What has to hold up
The first task is to keep the attack varied. Direct passes and quick movement have worked so far, but not every opponent will leave space behind the defence. Against sides that sit deep, the Highlanders will need patience, accurate crosses and better combinations around the penalty area. They must be able to win when a match does not open up.
Goals also need to come from across the squad. Ajaraie will stay central, but Moyano, Jithin, Aman and the other attacking options must share the load. Several players scored against Kerala, and repeating that is the hard part. A scoring run only means something when the team around it keeps improving, a point that applies to the way Ross County’s scoring surge has been described as the start of a wider rebuild.
Defensive concentration matters too. Kerala found a way back at 2-1, and stronger teams may punish loose passes or gaps left when full-backs and midfielders push forward. NorthEast need to protect the space around their centre-backs and avoid turning every lost ball into a risk.
Depth and fitness will shape the season as well. Injuries, suspensions and dips in form come with every long campaign, and 2025-26 showed how badly they can hurt. NorthEast need dependable options in every position and a rotation plan that keeps key players available without weakening the side. The schedule offers early tests. They visit Odisha FC at the Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar on 24 October, then host Bengaluru FC in Guwahati on 30 October. Those games will show whether their home form travels and how they cope against a rival on the same points.
Being first in October is a pleasant position, but it guarantees nothing. Holding a lead brings its own pressure, as the questions around Coleraine’s bid to hold off Linfield in Northern Ireland’s title race show in a different competition. For NorthEast, the immediate job is simpler. Keep collecting points, learn from each game and avoid treating early praise as proof that the work is done.
More than one club’s story
NorthEast United’s identity gives the title question added weight. The club represents eight states, and a successful first team can help more supporters see a path from local football to the national stage. Senior results alone cannot build that path. India’s wider football system depends on youth competitions and clear rules. The launch of the inaugural AIFF Under-15 Women’s Youth League gives young players another organised platform.
Those developments are separate from NorthEast’s ISL campaign, but they belong to the same wider story. A strong club can bring attention to a region. A lasting football culture also needs opportunities for young players, women and men, after any single season ends.
How far can this go?
There are real reasons for belief. The 1-0 win over Mohun Bagan showed that the Highlanders can grind out a result. The 4-1 win over Kerala showed what they can do when the attack clicks. Two Durand Cup titles and a fourth-place league finish in 2024-25 mean this is not a club starting from nothing.
There are also reasons for caution. The most recent league season ended in ninth place, the sample is only two matches, and the tougher tests are still to come. Whether NorthEast United can finally win the ISL will depend on how they respond when Ajaraie is contained, whether the defence stays firm, and how well the whole squad handles the long season. After two games the title is still a distant target. But for the first time this campaign, the Highlanders have made the question feel real.
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