The past month has been nothing short of a dream for Nathan Rodrigues. From his Indian Super League (ISL) debut to scoring in consecutive games, the Mumbai City FC full-back is truly living out his aspirations.

This change, however, didn’t come easily. After spending the entirety of last ISL season on the sidelines, Rodrigues’ breakthrough moment came on October 2, when he made his debut against Bengaluru FC at the Mumbai Football Arena.

Reflecting on that significant day, Rodrigues shared, "Starting with the warm-up, I was completely nervous."

"For the first five minutes (after kick-off) I was nervous, even upset with myself. I was wondering, 'What if I make a mistake?' Then my thoughts were, 'Can I make some good passes?' When the match started, I made some good passes, won duels too, and that's how I gained confidence," he said in an interview with The Times of India.

Following his role in securing the team’s first clean sheet of the season against the Blues, Rodrigues has firmly established himself as the starting left-back, filling in while first-choice Akash Mishra continues his rehabilitation.

The 20-year-old has now started in five consecutive matches for the Islanders. His confidence has soared, thanks to his contributions at both ends of the pitch—scoring in back-to-back games against Kerala Blasters FC (4-2) and Chennaiyin FC (1-1) during the league’s landmark 1000th match.

Reflecting on those two-headed goals, Rodrigues shared how much they have boosted his confidence.

"It's a great feeling to score in successive matches, it's a bit confidence booster. I believe I can perform at a much higher level. The goals came from set-pieces. I stuck to my role, and what was assigned to me (during training). Now I have to be consistent with my performances."

Rodrigues joined Mumbai City FC last summer from the Reliance Foundation Young Champs (RFYC) academy and made appearances in both the Durand Cup and the Super Cup. His ISL debut, however, only came this season. Competing as one of four options for the left-back role, Rodrigues remained determined, pushing himself even harder in training to seize his moment.

"I was annoyed, but giving up was not an option. So, I kept my head down, worked hard and tried to improve on my weaknesses."

The full-back made a strong impression during the pre-season camp. Although Sahil Panwar started in the first two matches, Rodrigues gained the coach’s confidence following his debut and is now focused solely on moving forward.

"I was happy that coach (Kratky) believed in me, he backed me. Since then, my only aim has been to do good and make him feel happy,” he commented.

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Mumbai City FC2024-2025 Nathan Asher Rodrigues