‘Good to get Balwant after Chhetri moved’

Last year, we had

Plan A and that was it. But now, we can change our approach depending on the game. I am very optimistic this time.

A GUIMARAES, Mumbai City coach

MUMBAI: Mumbai City FC managed their best finish last season under Costa Rican coach Alexandre Guimaraes. After topping the group stage and narrowly missing out on the final, they will be keen to better their position in the fourth edition.

The departure of Sunil Chhetri and Diego Forlan from their frontline has raised questions on their attacking capability. But Guimaraes is not worried. In fact, he seems to be slightly more optimistic about Mumbai’s chances this season.

“You are talking about one of the veterans of Indian football. But the moment I got to know that he (Chhetri) was moving to Bengaluru, we had to move on,” Guimaraes said.

Mumbai, however, have managed to recruit India striker Balwant Singh. The former Mohun Bagan player has three goals in four matches for India, two of them coming away to Macau in the Asian Cup qualifier.

“We have been lucky to pick up Balwant. We are very satisfied with his signing. It is not my problem right now. It’s the national coach’s (Stephen Constatine) headache. I am happy to have Balwant,” said Guimaraes.

Mumbai did manage to retain key players such as Gerson Viera, Lucian Goian, Sehnaj Singh and goalkeeper Amrinder Singh as they look to maintain their defensive edge. “When I talked to the Board and the CEO (Indranil Das Blah), I mentioned the need to retain the core players that enabled us to be very strong defensively. They understood and that. And we have started to build on the rest of the team from there,” said the Costa Rican.

Mumbai’s pre-season tour to Spain ended with four wins and two draws. “I think we have a possibility to experiment with our playing style given the players we have. Last year, we had a Plan A and that was it. But now, we can change our approach depending on the game. Looking at the varied characteristics of the players and our pre-season outings, I am very optimistic,” said Guimaraes.

Mumbai’s mainstay in defence Lucian Goian agreed. “Last season, defence was our strong point. We had a great work ethic and credit goes to the team. I believe upfront we have players who can make the difference. We are very confident that we can do well,” said the Romanian centre-back.