Having managed to qualify for the playoffs only once in the previous four editions of the Hero Indian Super League (ISL), Mumbai City FC will be hoping to repeat their 2016 performance and go the distance in the 2018-19 season. A new head coach to lead the club and a host of new signings over the course of the summer mean that the Islanders are leaving no stone unturned to ensure they don’t repeat the disappointment of last season, where they finished seventh.

Here we take a look at how they are poised leading to the new season.

TRANSFER INS AND OUTS

Mumbai City had a busy summer window with an influx of players being brought on board. Their captain Lucian Goian is the only foreign player who has been retained in the squad, thanks to his splendid performances last season. Other than him, six new international players have joined the bandwagon.

While attacking midfielder Matias Mirabaje made the switch from Delhi Dynamos to Mumbai this season, Senegalese winger Modou Sougou and former Portuguese international Paulo Machado have joined the squad to strengthen the midfield. The presence of Marko Klisura and Arnold Issoko is sure to make the defence sturdy, while Brazilian striker Rafael Bastos is expected to lead the attack.

When it comes to domestic players, Mumbai have made a number of good signings there as well. The capture of the trio of Subhasish Bose, Souvik Chakrabarti and Shouvik Ghosh is sure to add a lot of depth to the defence, while midfielders Raynier Fernandes, Milan Singh, Vignesh Dakshinamurthy and Mohammed Rafique join the Islanders after a favourable 2017-18 season with their respective clubs.

AT THE HELM

After having Alexandre Guimaraes at the helm of affairs for the past two years, the Islanders have found a new man to lead the charge in 2018-19 - Jorge Costa. The Portuguese comes armed with Champions League experience, having been the captain of FC Porto under Jose Mourinho.

The 46-year-old believes in having defensive solidity in his team, an aspect that can aid the Islanders this season as they conceded 29 goals in 2017-18 in 18 matches. Costa would also be taking a lot of confidence from Mumbai’s pre-season matches, where the team came together well to achieve positive results.

The Islanders travelled to Thailand for their pre-season preparations and remained unbeaten in the four matches they played against local clubs, winning three and drawing once. This would act as a huge confidence boost for the entire squad, who would be raring to continue this form at the start of the new season.

STRENGTHS

Having leaked a total of 29 goals in 2017-18, the defence proved to be an area of concern for Mumbai. But to ensure the defensive loopholes do not exist this year, they have made a number of sturdy defensive signings, thus, making the defence their strength.

While Goian would be the chief architect in the backline and Amrinder Singh would be hoping to repeat his exploits from last season, the new signings including Bose, Chakrabarti, Issoko and Klisura would give Costa a lot of options to choose from at the back.

AREAS OF CONCERN

Even though the squad looks decent on paper, a lack of Hero ISL experience in the midfield and attack may prove to be Mumbai’s setback this season. Except for Mirabaje, none of the other foreign signings has ever played in India before and may take time to acclimate themselves. Also, the other young additions have to adapt fast to the Hero ISL stage, having played mainly in the Hero I-League before. Thus, Costa needs to ensure the players reach their full potential as soon as possible.

SQUAD

GOALKEEPERS: Amrinder Singh, Ravi Kumar, Kunal Sawant

DEFENDERS: Davinder Singh, Souvik Chakrabarti, Lucian Goian, Marko Klisura, Anwar Ali, Bikramjeet Singh, Shouvik Ghosh, Subhasish Bose, Arnold Issoko

MIDFIELDERS: Sanju Pradhan, Bipin Singh, Mohammed Rafique, Milan Singh, Raynier Fernandes, Sehnaj Singh, Matias Mirabaje, Modou Sougou, Paulo Machado, Vignesh Dakshinamurthy

FORWARDS: Pranjal Bhumij, Rafael Bastos, Alen Deory

FINAL VERDICT

The Islanders have made some clever investments in the transfer market, bringing on board players whom Costa believe can play his style of football. With no dearth of quality in the side, all that remains to be seen is how well the three departments come together on the pitch and become one solid unit. If they start on the front foot, Mumbai have a good chance of reaching the playoffs this time around.

Mumbai City begin their 2018-19 campaign at home against Jamshedpur FC on October 2, before travelling to Kochi to face Kerala Blasters on October 5.

To view their full list of fixtures, click here.

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Mumbai City FC 2018-2019