Mumbai City will fight for every trophy, says Brandon Fernandes

New Delhi, Aug 20 (IANS) Mumbai City FC new signing Brandon Fernandes has claimed that the club will "fight for every piece of silverware" and he is ready to challenge himself at the new club. 

The 29-year old’s ability to carry the ball in transition, find gaps in opposing defenses, create goal scoring opportunities and bury the ball in the back of the net the has seen him earn the phrase ‘Bend it like Brandon’, an ode to one of the best midfielder in football history David Beckham, by fans of his previous club.

However in a club like Mumbai City, success is not an option it is a must. Brandon speaks on the reason behind his move to Mumbai, the club’s ambition to ‘be champions’ and more.

“It’s very simple, they play a style of football that’s very exciting and it suits my style of play. Their philosophy, system has always been something I’ve wanted to be a part of. Mumbai City is one of the most successful and biggest clubs in India, it’s a very exciting project and I wanted to take this opportunity to challenge myself,” Brandon told IANS.

Mumbai City and Mohun Bagan were involved in a heavyweight battle in the 2023/24 ISL season. Both teams were in a topsy-turvy title race which saw the team from Kolkata edge ahead and clinch the Shield by just one point.

A turning point in the title race was Mumbai’s away loss against Mohun Bagan in the final leg of the 2023/24 season, however despite the league loss Mumbai returned to the iconic Salt Lake Stadium days later and this time triumphed in the final to win the ISL Cup.

After winning the ISL Shield in 2023 and the Cup in 2024, A major [problem for any big team is how they stay motivated to put in the hardwork and dedication to g0 and do it again. Brandon went on to state the team’s ‘winning mentality’ will see them compete for every trophy.

“They (MCFC) have this winning mentality, their ambition is that they want to be champions all the time so we will be going hard and giving everything for every silverware that is available to us,” he added.

The Mumbai City First Team under Head Coach Petr Kratky is currently in Thailand for their pre-season camp. The Islanders have set up their base in Bangkok, Thailandrom from July 28 and will be returning to India after playing a friendly against Thai side Hoang Anh Gia Lai FC on August 21. Brandon suggested the friendly will be a ‘good test’ to see where the side stands ahead of the new ISL season on September 13.

“The team is shaping up well in all aspects but tomorrow will be a good test for us to see where we stand,” he concluded.

--IANS

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