Mumbai City FC

First season (2014)

On 15 September 2014, the club signed Nicolas Anelka, a former French international who had been a free agent since his departure from West Bromwich Albion earlier in the year.^[5] Three days later, former Swedish international Fredrik Ljungberg was signed as the team's first marquee player, returning from two years of retirement.^[6]

Mumbai were the visitors in the first ever ISL match on 12 October 2014, at Atlético de Kolkata's Salt Lake Stadium. Without Anelka and Ljungberg, the side lost 3–0.^[7] On 18 October 2014, the club registered their first victory over FC Pune City by beating them 5–0 at DY Patil Stadium, Mumbai, in which Andre Moritz registered the first ever hat-trick of ISL. The team finished seventh in the table out of eight and did not qualify for the playoffs.

Second season (2015)

In July 2015, Nicolas Anelka became player-manager, replacing Englishman Peter Reid.^[8] Frantz Bertin was appointed captain at the beginning of the season. The club signed India's All Time Record Goal Scorer and Indian National Football Team captain Sunil Chhetri for a domestic record-breaking deal. The club also signed 2015 I-league's player of the year Haitian Sony Norde. Sunil Chhetri was the top scorer for Blues as he scored 7 Goals including a hat trick against North East United FC. Mumbai won only four matches and lost six matches out of 14 matches to finish in sixth position in the group table. Due to such results, Anelka hung his boots, resigned and announced his departure at the end of the season.

Alexandre Guimarães Era (2016-2018)

After first two seasons, Mumbai City's management made big changes as they appointed Alexandre Guimaraes as the head coach for the 2016-17 Indian Super League (ISL) season. The club also moved into their new home, Mumbai Football Arena. The club also signed 2010 FIFA World Cup Golden Ball winner Diego Forlan on a three month deal. ^[9]

Ljungberg sat out the first season after a few brief appearances. Anelka moved to a coaching role but failed to impart the winning touch. This season, it has been the Diego Forlan show. The Uruguayan has changed the dynamics of a struggling team to genuine title contenders.He has scored, assisted and kept the opposition goalkeeper busy with numerous attempts. He has refused to bow down in difficult conditions. Being a core professional, Forlan has given his every bit for his new side. Diego Forlan scored the first hat-trick of the Hero Indian Super League 2016 season as Mumbai City FC demolished Kerala Blasters 5-0 at Mumbai Football Arena on 19 November 2016. It was also the first hat-trick of any marquee Player in the history of the ISL. The team conceded the least number of goals (8) of all teams in the league, whilst Lucian Goian has the most number of tackles (67) in the league.With only 8 goals conceded, the message was loud and clear. Defensive units were austere in the face of immense attack. This managed to fix the goal conceded stat in favour of the Mumbaikars. Alexandre’s men have kept 8 clean sheets in the group stage, making it a record across all the three editions of the tournament. This has been possible due to the rugged approach of the team. A compact midfield and a packed defense have kept the opposition attackers at bay. The result is there for the rest of the teams to see. The support he has received from the pack of domestic and other foreigners has been beyond reproach. Argentine Matias Defederico has been exceptionally brilliant, partnering Forlan up front. The dual forward strategy has reaped massive benefits for the team. They have bagged the record for inflicting the biggest defeat when they pumped 5 goals past FC Pune City. As the Result, Mumbai City finished the 14 rounds with 6 wins, 5 draws and 3 losses. Their imperious form has seen them demolish opponents with gusto. This has been possible due to the fortitude imbibed within the team. Their resilience had ensured remarkable comebacks while faced with abject adversities. They have won critical matches, defended bravely and carved out impossible draws from lost causes. This ensured a steep improvement from the previous seasons. However, it went down to Atletico de Kolkata in the twin legged semi-finals.

The Mumbai franchise continued to work with Guimaraes once again after he guided the club to their first ever playoffs in three seasons. The club opted to resign Amrinder Singh for 1.20 crores INR. He was the best goalkeeper in the league in 2016, keeping record clean sheets for the club. They also retained the services of midfielder Sehnaj Singh who was instrumental in the club's success the earlier season. In the foreign department, they retained the defensive duo of Lucian Goian & Gerson Vieira and midfielder Leo Costa. They also retained Rakesh Oram under the U-21 player quota. They finished the season a disappointing 7th, failing to qualify for the playoffs, with the coach being criticized for overly defensive tactics. on 14th August 2018, Mumbai City FC Officially Stated as, "Mumbai City FC and Alexandre Guimaraes have parted company by mutual consent." It was the End Guimarães Era as The Brazilian-born Costa Rican manager had been with the Islanders since 2016 after he took over from Nicolas Anelka.

Fifth season (2018)

After the announcement Of Mumbai City FC have parted ways with Alexandre Guimaraes, the Islanders Broke the news about their new head coach. Former Portugal international Jorge Costa has signed to be the coach of Mumbai City FC for the 2018/19 Indian Super League season.The former Portuguese international has a vast experience of managing football clubs. His most notable stints include that of Braga, Pacos Ferreira, and Gabon. The 46-year-old will take over from Costa Rican Alexandre Guimaraes who could not steer the club to the semifinal playoffs last season after agreeing to a deal with the Islanders. The Club also Signed some talented Indian Footballers most notably Souvik Chakrabarti & Subhasish Bose with the mix of Youth & experience.

Supporters and rivalries

West Coast Brigade is the official fan club of Mumbai City FC, which is known for its vociferous support to the team both home and away. Renowned for travelling in large numbers to support the team across the length and breadth of the country, the West Coast Brigade is held in extremely high regard by the MCFC management and the players as they have dedicated a stand for the West Coast Brigade members in the Mumbai Football Arena. In 2017, Mumbai City FC became the first club in ISL History to announce a special section for away fans

Rivalries

FC Pune City and Mumbai City FC are the only 2 clubs in the Indian Super League from a single state i.e. Maharashtra, which created an elite rivalry between the two, one that is now renowned as the Maha-Derby.

The high level of intensity promised during a Maha-Derby never failed to meet fans expectations and their incessant need to defeat their respective rivals kept the fans on the edge of their seats.

Crest and Colours

The crest is a perfect reflection of the city's identity. It consists of three main elements, all forming the city's image. The fortress wall on the top depicts the resilient, proud and determined spirit of Mumbai and it's people. The seven stars are a reference to the seven islands that form Mumbai, each, an integral and special part of the city. The railway system is an important part of the city, and proves to be it's lifeline. It is also the perfect symbol for the spirit of Mumbai - diverse, yet united. It is on this very fundamental that the city functions as a competent, cohesive unit, and thus, the train has been incorporated in the crest.

Mumbai City FC crest

The navy blue colour represents the sea; a figure the city is deeply connected to, in both economic as well as symbolic terms. The white represents sincerity and purity, both of which, the club strives to embody.

Current squad

As of 25 September 2018^[10][11]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Position Player 1 GK Amrinder Singh 3 DF Shouvik Ghosh 4 DF Marko Klisura 5 DF Anwar Ali 6 MF Milan Singh 7 DF Arnold Issoko 8 MF Mohammed Rafique 10 MF Matías Mirabaje 11 MF Raynier Fernandes 12 MF Sanju Pradhan 15 DF Subashish Bose 16 FW Rafael Bastos 17 FW Pranjal Bhumij

No. Position Player 18 DF Lucian Goian (captain) 19 MF Vignesh Dakshinamurthi 21 GK Ravi Kumar 23 DF Souvik Chakraborty 25 FW Alen Deory 26 MF Sehnaj Singh 28 MF Modou Sougou 29 MF Bipin Singh 30 GK Kunal Sawant 32 DF Davinder Singh 37 DF Bikramjeet Singh 55 MF Paulo Machado

Out on Loan

As of

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Position Player 4 DF Anwar Ali On Loan to (Indian Arrows)

Notable former players

As of September 2018

• Players who have represented their nations in FIFA World Cup

Name	Country
Nicolas Anelka	France
Manuel Friedrich	Germany
Fredrik Ljungberg	Sweden
Frantz Bertin	Haiti
Sony Norde	Haiti
Selim Benachour	Tunisia
Darren O'Dea	Republic of Ireland
Frédéric Piquionne	Martinique
Diego Forlán	Uruguay
Matías Defederico	Argentina
Krisztián Vadócz	Hungary
Achille Emaná	Cameroon

Top goalscorers

As of Match played 5 April 2018

	Name	Years	League	Knockouts	Total
1	Sunil Chhetri	2015-16	7 (15)	0- 0(2)	7 (17)
2	Balwant Singh (footballer)	2017	6 (16)	0- 0(2)	6 (16)
3	Éverton Santos	2017	6 (18)	0- 0(-)	6 (18)
4	Diego Forlan	2016	5 (10)	0- 0(1)	5 (11)
5	Thiago Nascimento dos Santos	2017	5 (13)	0- 0(-)	5 (13)
6	Sony Norde	2015-16	4 (21)	0- 0(2)	4 (23)
7	André Moritz	2014-15	3 (8)	0- 0(-)	3 (8)
8	Frédéric Piquionne	2015	3 (12)	0- 0(-)	3 (12)
9	Matías Defederico	2016	3 (12)	0- 0(2)	3 (14)
10	Krisztián Vadócz	2016	3 (12)	0- 0(2)	3 (14)
11	Léo Costa	2016-18	2 (18)	01 0(2)	3 (20)
12	Achille Emaná	2017	3 (18)	00 0(0)	3 (18)
13	Lucian Goian	2016-18	3 (30)	00 0(2)	3 (32)
14	Nicolas Anelka	2014–15	2 (13)	0- 0(-)	2 (13)

Managerial

As of Match played until 5 April 2018

Name	Nationality	From	To	P	W	D	L	GF	GA	Win%
Peter Reid	England	4 September 2014[14]	2014	7001140000000000000♠14	7000400000000000000♠4	7000400000000000000♠4	7000600000000000000♠6	7001120000000000000♠12	7001210000000000000♠21	07001285700000000000♠28.57
Nicolas Anelka	France	3 July 2015[15]	2015	7001140000000000000♠14	7000400000000000000♠4	7000400000000000000♠4	7000600000000000000♠6	7001160000000000000♠16	7001260000000000000♠26	07001285700000000000♠28.57
Alexandre Guimarães	Costa Rica	19 April 2016[16]	2018	7001340000000000000♠34	7001130000000000000♠13	7000800000000000000♠8	7001130000000000000♠13	7001430000000000000♠43	7001370000000000000♠37	07001382400000000000♠38.24