(Football News) Mumbai City FC kick off their league title defence and have named a 27-member squad to represent the Islanders in the 2023-24 Indian Super League.
Des Buckingham’s side set the stage ablaze last season, breaking as many as 17 all-time ISL records, en route to winning the League Winners’ Shield in 18 games, with two rounds to spare. The Islanders will come in to the new ISL campaign aiming to do what no other club has done before – successfully defend the ISL League Winners Shield.
Last season’s ISL Player of the Season and AIFF Men’s Player of the Year, Lallianzuala Chhangte, will aim to repeat his exploits as he features in the Islanders’ squad alongside the likes of Jorge Pereyra Díaz, Bipin Singh and Vikram Partap Singh in attack. Having won the ISL Shield for two seasons in a row, Greg Stewart will aim to add a third consecutive league title to his rich list of accolades.
The likes of Phurba Lachenpa, Rahul Bheke, Rostyn Griffiths, Mehtab Singh and Apuia, who form the core of Des Buckingham’s Mumbai City side, will be supported by a mix of youth and experience in Mohammad Nawaz, Sanjeev Stalin, Halen Nongtdu, Vinit Rai, Valpuia, Gurkirat Singh, Ayush Chhikara and others.Eight new Islanders – Akash Mishra, Tiri, Yoëll van Nieff, Abdenasser El Khayati, Jayesh Rane, Seilenthang Lotjem, Franklin Nazareth and Nathan Rodrigues – joined the club over the summer and will all feature in their debut ISL campaign with Mumbai City FC.
FULL SQUAD
Goalkeepers: Phurba Lachenpa, Mohammad Nawaz, Bhaskar Roy, Ahan Prakash
Defenders: Rahul Bheke, Valpuia, Tiri, Mehtab Singh, Sanjeev Stalin, Rostyn Griffiths, Nathan Rodrigues, Akash Mishra, Halen Nongtdu
Midfielders: Yoëll van Nieff, Vinit Rai, Jayesh Rane, Apuia Ralte, Franklin Nazareth
Forwards: Vikram Partap Singh, Lallianzuala Chhangte, Gurkirat Singh, Seilenthang Lotjem, Abdenasser El Khayati, Greg Stewart, Ayush Chhikara, Bipin Singh, Jorge Pereryra Díaz
About Mumbai City FC
Mumbai City FC was formed in August 2014 and is a club competing in the Hero Indian Super League. The Islanders, as the club is fondly known, is the only team in India to have won the unique ‘double’, winning the Hero ISL League and the Playoffs in the 2020-21 season. The club won a second league title in 2022-23 in record-breaking fashion. Mumbai City FC has competed at the Asian stage in the 2022 AFC Champions League, where it finished second in Group B and also became the first Indian club to register wins in Asia’s premier club competition.
Originally owned by Bollywood actor Ranbir Kapoor and businessman Bimal Parekh, City Football Group acquired a majority stake in Mumbai City FC in November 2019, joining the likes of Manchester City FC, New York City FC and Melbourne City FC and others in the CFG family. Mumbai City FC plays its home games at the 7,000-seater Mumbai Football Arena located in Andheri, Mumbai. The club’s crest houses key elements that represent the city of Mumbai and is a reflection of the dynamic, relentless and modern values that define Mumbai City FC.
