Still in with a mathematical chance of making it to the last four, the hosts have everything to play for against a solid Kolkata unit who have struggled in recent matches after a splendid start to their campaign.

And since this is their last home game of the season, Mumbai City FC would be keen to put up a good show and give the fans something to cheer. The loyal and enthusiastic home fans deserve nothing less than a victory to sign off, and the Mumbai City FC players will try everything to give the fans what they deserve.

Mumbai City FC went down 0-3 to the same opponents in Kolkata in their season opener, and would have surely learnt a lot about the opposition from that game. Mumbai City FC were solid till the half-time in that game, and would be cautious to not let it slip away in the second half, like they did in Kolkata. That game was played just a little under two months ago, and a lot of things have changed since then. Hence, Mumbai City FC won’t need to carry any burden of that loss, and would do well to look at it as a fresh game.

Coach Peter Reid has often spoken about being solid at the back, and that is something the Mumbai City FC have tried to work on throughout the season. And they will try to ensure that all the hard work done in the practice shows in the final result against Kolkata, who have a very good forward line. Goalkeeper Subrata Pal has often been left stranded, and that is something Mumbai City FC would try to avoid on Sunday.

In the absence of Freddie Ljungberg, Nicolas Anelka and Moritz, the hosts’ forward line has not looked threatening enough. And although coach Reid has been honest enough to not make that as an excuse, the absence of these experienced pros has had an impact. Mumbai City FC have scored just once in the last six games, and that is one stat they would love to change on Sunday. A goal early in the game can change the whole scenario, and can lift the morale of the entire team and keep their slim semifinal hopes alive.

It’s not that the Mumbai City FC have not created the chances, but at times, have been let down by their finishing. However, one quality finish, especially early on, can change that, and that’s something Mumbai City FC would try to achieve on Sunday. And should that happen, it could be a different contest altogether.

“I am not looking at mathematical permutations and combinations. As a coach, I am just going to try and win the game with as many goals as possible,” Mumbai City FC coach Peter Reid said on the eve of the game. We just got to go out there and try and win the game, and that’s what we are going to do.

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The team, co-owned by Bollywood star Ranbir Kapoor and Chartered Accountant Bimal Parekh, dominated the proceedings throughout the 90 minute encounter but were denied three points by the crossbar and profligacy of their strikers.

The draw took Mumbai City FC’s points tally to 12 points from nine outings and the team remains in fifth spot in overall standings while FC Goa are seventh with nine points.

Just like the last encounter between the two teams, the game was a battle of attrition in the midfield and Mumbai City FC had the better of the exchanges from the start.

The hosts, who now have maintained five clean sheets, went into the match with an aggressive game plan and coach Peter Reid opted for a 4-4-1-1 system with fit-again Andre Moritz sitting behind lone striker Nicolas Anelka.

The strategy worked very well for the hosts as the team controlled play throughout the first half and came up with at least half a dozen moves that had the potential of finding the opening goal,

The first came within five minutes when Anelka’s outstretched leg managed to connect to a cross too well and the ball sailed over the crossbar after a mistake in the FC Goa defence.

Subhash Singh and Lalrindika Ralte also had the opportunity to get their name on the scoresheet but the former pulled his shot wide with only the goalkeeper to beat in the 20th minute and FC Goa custodian Jan Seda came up with a superb low dive to keep out Dika’s left-footer.

In between these two chances, FC Goa could have taken the lead against the run of play but an alert Subrata Pal managed to parry Gabriel Fernandes’ shot.

The second half continued with the same script and it looked like Mumbai City FC had found that illusive goal when Moritz’s strike from outside the box went past an outstretched Seda, only for the ball to rebound off the woodwork in the 82nd minute.

FC Goa could have took the lead against the run of play when Tolgay Ozbey’s low strike hit the post three minutes later and Pal had to come up with a couple of good saves in the last few minutes to maintain the status quo.
Coach Peter Reid was satisfied with the final result and said he would any day take a draw as against a defeat. “We prefer draws to losing. It is better to draw than lose a match as it shows that we are a tough team to beat. The positive thing is that we created a lot chances but unluckily we could not convert them. We will work a bit on it before the next game.”

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Kondwani Mtonga and Felipe de Castro score second half goals to give NorthEast United FC three points in their first away encounter of the tournament.

The hosts went into the match riding on the high of beating FC Pune City 5-0 in their last encounter and they looked like continuing from where they left off against their state rivals against the North East side but were unlucky not to convert that domination into goals.

Mumbai City FC made no change to their starting XI from the last game and their first chance came as early as the seventh minute when Johann Letzelter played a pass to last match hero Andre Moritz but his low left footed shot from outside the box was just wide.

The hosts dominated the entire first half but a combination of some bad luck and good defending by the opposition meant that the two teams went into the breather with the deadlock yet to be broken.

The second half was no different with manager Peter Reid introducing marquee player Freddie Ljungberg for Andre Moritz to try and put pressure on the opposition. But it was Mtonga who broke the deadlock against the run of play when he collected a pass from Koke and chipped the ball over the advancing Subrata Pal in the Mumbai City FC goal.

The setback only spurred the hosts to launch more lethal attacks on the opposition citadel with the manager making a couple of tactical substitution in search of an equaliser.

But a freakish injury to Ljungberg in the 73rd minute meant that Mumbai City FC were down to 10 men for the last quarter and a double booking for centre-back Pavel Cmovs only made the task tougher.

Despite the disadvantage, the likes of Subhash Singh and Jan Stohanzl continued to put pressure on the visitors in search of a goal but all those efforts only meant that there was more space for North East United to exploit and they managed to score the second in the 90th minute when de Castro guided home a cross from James Keene.

Mumbai City FC coach Peter Reid took this defeat in his stride and said that the team will fight back. “There are the ups and downs in the game. I am confident that we will fight back in the upcoming games. We are looking forward to Chennai, and looking forward to a strong show. Also looking forward to see Nicolas Anelka play in the next game and make Mumbai City FC a stronger side,” he said.

Reid sounded a bit worried about Freddie Ljungberg’s injury but said he was happy with Moritz playing for 45 minutes even though he was injured but gave his best. He expects Moritz to be in his best form in the next match.

Result: FC North East United 2 (Kodwani Mtonga 57, Do Dong 90) bt Mumbai City FC 0; Emerging player: Durgaboro; Man-of-the-Match: Kondwani Mtonga; Fit player of the match: Lalrindka Ralte; Best moment of the match: Nadong Bhutia

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A big crowd gathered at the D Y Patil stadium to witness the action of their home team, and they were thoroughly entertained by a high quality performance from the Mumbai City FC unit that dominated proceedings all the way. Andre Moritz’s goals in the 12^th, 27^th and 71^th minute, as well as goals from Subhash Singh (37^th minute) and Johann Letzelter (85^th minute) allowed MCFC to completely dominate the FCPC, who paid for some very ordinary defending.

Mumbai City FC 5-0 FC Pune City

Following a loss in their opening game, MCFC showed a lot of courage and played superb counter-attacking and aggressive game. FC Pune City managed to have just one shot on target to Mumbai City FC’s 11, such was the latter’s domination.

Mumbai made four changes to their starting XI that played against Atletico de Kolkata in the tournament opener. Skipper Syed Rahim Nabi, who has been ruled out for three weeks due to injury, was replaced by Brazil born Andre Moritz while Subhash Singh came in to complete the Indian quota in place of Argentine Diego Nadaya.

Moritz immediately showed his worth when the Italian passport holder scored MCFC’s first goal of the tournament against the run of play in the 12th minute.

The attacking midfielder made a run from the right, cut in just before the FC Pune City box and unleashed a low left footer to beat the goalkeeper.

Till then the visitors had dominated the proceedings with their marquee player David Trezeguet wasting a free-kick from the edge of the box in the third minute.

But just when it felt like the hosts were being put under pressure by FCPC’s free flowing football, Moritz struck and changed the complexion of the game.

MCFC then began to assert themselves more and Nadung Bhutia could have made it 2-0 with a close range header only to be denied by the goalkeeper. However, Moritz flicked in the resulting corner to double his team’s advantage in the 27th minute and Subhash Singh made it 3-0 ten minutes later with a low right footer despite being a lone MCFC player upfront on the counter.

Subhash had a chance to add to his tally five minutes from half time but could only stab the ball wide off a through ball from the half line.

Moritz completed his hat-trick in the 70^th minute, just three minutes after the arrival of star player Freddie Ljungberg, showing some great skill. An error from a FCPC defender gave Moritz the ball in dangerous area, and the Brazilian then moved forward with purpose, put the brakes on to beat defender Cirillo, and comfortably slotted the ball past the goalkeeper with a low right-footed shot. This turned out to be the first hat-trick in the Indian Super League.

Frenchman Johan Letzelter then added more misery on a hapless FCPC defence by adding a fifth for Mumbai City FC in the 85^th.

Mumbai City FC coach Peter Reid was obviously happy with the team’s performance, and said the home crowd created a terrific atmosphere. “It was a great comeback after the defeat in Kolkata. We passed well, which was one of our targets. We are looking forward to maintain that in the future games,” the coach said.

Man-of-the-Match Andre Moritz said, “Every game is different. And therefore it’s important to play well in every game. I am delighted to have contributed today, and I am looking forward to contribute to the team’s cause in the future.”

Another goal-scorer Subhash Singh said he was delighted to have scored and is looking forward to continue his goal-scoring form in the future games.

Result:

Mumbai City FC 5 (Andre Moritz 12, 27, 71; Subhash Singh 37, Johann Letzelter 85) bt FC Pune City 0.

Hero of the Match: Andre Moritz;

Swift Moment of the match: Subhash Singh;

Fit player of the match: Lalrindika Ralte;

Outstanding young talent: Subhash Singh

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Marquee Player Freddie Ljungberg, Manuel Friedrich, along with Indian stars to play their first home match at D.Y. Patil Stadium on 18th October 2014

Mumbai, 8^th October 2014: Mumbai City FC announced the commencement of ticket sales for the upcoming season of the Hero Indian Super League. The start of ticket sales signals the beginning of the countdown of inaugural edition of Hero ISL 2014, scheduled to begin from 12^th October 2014.

Mumbai City FC will play their first home match against FC Pune City on 18^th October 2014 at D.Y. Patil Stadium, Navi Mumbai at 19:00 Hrs. Mumbai City FC is set to play their inaugural match of Hero ISL tournament against Atletico de Kolkata at Salt Lake Stadium, Kolkata on 12^th October 2014.

The sale of tickets went live on 6^th October on www.bookmyshow.com, which is India’s largest entertainment ticketing destination.

The tickets are priced starting at Rs.125, to ensure all football enthusiasts get a chance to catch the live action.

Fans can also find the link to the ticketing webpage

http://in.bookmyshow.com/sport/indian-super-league/mumbai-city-fc/

For now tickets for Mumbai City FC home matches are only available online. Announcement on ticket sales at the stadium and outlets will be made soon.

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Palava, 20th September 2014: Football fever is back with India’s biggest Football extravaganza, the Hero Indian Super League (ISL) beginning on 12th October. In a run up to ISL, the Mumbai City FC team as part of their community outreach program visited Palava, the City of Opportunity.

Promoted by Ranbir Kapoor and Bimal Parekh, the team boasts of international stars and top domestic talent. Ex-Arsenal legend and former captain of the Swedish National team, Freddie Ljungberg, former French National team player and winner of the Premier League Golden Boot 2008-2009, Nicolas Anelka, ex-Borussia Dortmund defender and German National team player, Manuel Friedrich, Argentinean Diego Nadaya and the current Indian National team goalkeeper, Subrata Pal form the nucleus of this star studded team headed by the ex-Everton icon Peter Reid as manager.

The squad spent the entire Saturday at Palava beginning with a special workshop and training session for 60 kids conducted at the state of the art football ground by Assistant Coach, Steve Darby, an ESPN Star Sports pundit and most recently the head coach of Kelantan FA in the Malaysia Super League. The children were thrilled to train and interact with their idols, taking autographs and clicking pictures with the stars.

Following the training, the players spent a relaxed day at Palava with a round of Golf at the serene 9-hole golf course by the river and other recreational sports at Palava.

Steve Darby, Assistant Coach – Mumbai City FC, said: “Kids in Mumbai have tremendous enthusiasm for football, and now at Palava, they have a great football facility where they can hone their skills and achieve excellence. This has been a wonderful opportunity for Mumbai City FC to connect with its fans and we look forward to many more such engaging interactions.”

Shaishav Dharia, Development Director, Palava said: “We are tremendously pleased to host Mumbai City FC at Palava and give young enthusiasts the opportunity to meet and train with the stars. This is another step in our endeavour to not just provide world class sports facilities, but create platforms that enhance skills and create special experiences for our residents.”

About Mumbai City Football Club
Mumbai City Football Club or Mumbai City FC, is Mumbai’s franchise in the inaugural Hero Indian Super League. Bollywood actor and football enthusiast Ranbir Kapoor and chartered accountant Bimal Parekh together own the team. Mumbai’s D.Y Patil Stadium is the team’s home stadium.
The team’s logo is a reflection of a resilient fortress that stands proudly, surrounding the logo that signifies the unrelenting, determined spirit of the city. The seven stars symbolize the islands that form Mumbai. Trains that are the very lifeline of the city ply millions of Mumbaikars across its vast expanse and connect these islands. Each passenger, each citizen of the city is bound together by their love for the place they call home. 20 million citizens, 20 million hearts pulse to a single beat – the heartbeat of Mumbai.

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Mumbai, 18th September 2014: Mumbai City FC today announced the signing of the outstanding Freddie Ljungberg as the marquee player for the inaugural season of the upcoming Indian Super League (ISL). Karl Fredrik Ljungberg, better known as Freddie Ljungberg, is a former Swedish National Team Captain and a midfielder who has been a critical part of football clubs such as Arsenal, West Ham United and Halmstads BK. His presence at Mumbai City FC will ensure the team has a strong midfield with Ljungberg comfortable playing on either wing in midfield.

Freddie Ljungberg, Welcome to Mumbai City FC

Ljungberg is recognized the world over for his skill and contribution to the sport when he was part of Arsenal’s feared lineup in the early part of this millennium. For several seasons, he played a major role for the club including being a member of the unbeaten 49 game run for the team. In 2008, Arsenal’s manager Arsène Wenger placed Ljungberg 11th in Arsenal Gunners’ Greatest 50 Players. For his home country of Sweden, Ljungberg has earned 75 caps scoring 14 times.

Speaking about the signing, team owner Ranbir Kapoor said, “Mumbai City FC is immensely proud to sign a player like Freddie Ljungberg today. As a former Sweden captain and Arsenal great, the world football fraternity understands what he is worth and I’m sure Mumbai’s football fans will be delighted with his presence in the team. He will enrich us with his talent and experience and we look forward to seeing him making Mumbai proud in the coming season.”

After joining the Mumbai City FC team, Freddie Ljungberg said, “Mumbai City FC presents a thrilling opportunity to play in India and I’m glad to be part of the team in the very first Indian Super League season. Talented Indian players together with the likes of Anelka, Friedrich, ?movš and others will make the team an exciting outfit and I look forward to contributing to the team’s success.”

Ever since the Vittsjö born talent started playing football, he was credited as being someone who was remarkably capable for his age and a player who would pass the ball to his friends so that they would have a chance to score. At the age of 12, Ljungberg convinced Halmstads BK to move him from p12 to p14, which was against Halmstad’s policies at the time.

At age 14, he joined the junior team under Coach Robert Nordström. His perseverance paid off because three years later he was moved up to the senior team where he made his senior debut on 23rd October 1994 in the Allsvenskan against AIK. In 1995, Ljungberg played 31 games in which he scored his first goal as a professional player. That same year Halmstad won the Swedish Cup.

Ljungberg was signed by Arsenal in 1998 for £3 million, which at the time was the highest transfer fee ever for a Swedish player. Arsenal scouts watched him for over a year and Wenger took the unusual step of authorizing the signing after watching Ljungberg play for Sweden in their victory against England on television, without seeing him play live.

Ljungberg proved himself without difficulty and scored on his debut after coming on as a substitute against rivals Manchester United, the match ending 3–0. Some of Ljungberg’s best form came in the second half of the 2001–02 season, when Arsenal won their second Premier League and FA Cup double.

Ljungberg became a regular in Arsenal’s starting lineup following the departure of Emmanuel Petit and Marc Overmars in the summer of 2000. For several seasons he played a major role for the club including being a member of the unbeaten 49 game run for Arsenal.

After his nine years at Arsenal FC, Ljungberg went on to play for West Ham United, Seattle Sounders FC, Chicago Fire, Celtic Glasgow and Shimizu S-Pulse.

Mumbai City FC welcomes Freddie Ljungberg to its fold and his addition strengthens the football club further ahead of its inaugural Indian Super League season.

About Mumbai City Football Club

Mumbai City Football Club or Mumbai City FC, is Mumbai’s franchise in the inaugural Hero Indian Super League. Bollywood actor and football enthusiast Ranbir Kapoor and chartered accountant Bimal Parekh together own the team. Mumbai’s D.Y Patil Stadium is the team’s home stadium. The team’s logo is a reflection of a resilient fortress that stands proudly, surrounding the logo that signifies the unrelenting, determined spirit of the city. The seven stars symbolize the islands that form Mumbai. Trains that are the very lifeline of the city ply millions of Mumbaikars across its vast expanse and connect these islands. Each passenger, each citizen of the city is bound together by their love for the place they call home. 20 million citizens, 20 million hearts pulse to a single beat – the heartbeat of Mumbai.

For the latest photos, videos and updates please visit:
http://www.youtube.com/MumbaiCityFC | http://twitter.com/MumbaiCityFC | https://www.facebook.com/MumbaiCityFC

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