'Want to do what no Indian club has done before', says Mumbai City coach before AFC Champions League

Mumbai City FC will be looking to do what no Indian club has done before when they begin their AFC Champions League campaign on Friday - win a match.

Head coach Des Buckingham and captain Mandar Rao Dessai, speaking to the media via a virtual press conference two days ahead of their Asian adventure, said they expect some very hard competition in Riyadh but that they will put their best foot forward.

"This is the second time an Indian club has been at this level. Goa showed what we can do, they got 3 points from 3 games with 3 draws. We want to do what no Indian club has done before. Which is to win a game. That would be creating relative history for us. We know we are representing not just the city of Mumbai but the whole of India," said Buckingham.

For their first match on Friday, tournament debutants Mumbai City FC will be up against Al Shabab, a Saudi Arabian club who will be making their tenth appearance.

"Al Shabab have a monetary value of players 5-6 times more than us. That puts the match-up into context. But you cannot afford to look at that and give up. Teams that we will come up against are the best in Asia, so it will be exciting to face this challenge. We have many players who haven't competed at this level before. We know we have to smart but at the same time we need to find a structure that allows us our style of play," added the coach.

Having watched replays of FC Goa's Asian Champions League matches over the last few days, one figure has stood out for Buckingham. They have more than 65% of the possession in their ISL matches but had only around 35% in their ACL matches last year.

Mandar Rao Desai said: "These matches will be completely different from our league games, it's the Champions League after all. The levels are higher, our training has to be different."

The Mumbai team were at a two-week training camp in Al Forsan, Abu Dhabi before reaching Riyadh. They played two friendlies in this duration - beating UAE Pro League table-toppers Al Ain by 2-1 and then beating Al Hilal United 2-0. Over the next couple of weeks, they will play their Group B matches against UAE's Al Jazira, Saudi Arabia's Al Shabab and three-time AFC Cup winners Air Force Club of Iraq. The knockout stage of the competition will be held in February next year.

Mumbai City FC qualified for their maiden AFC Champions League after topping the league phase of the ISL 2020-21 season. This season, they failed to qualify for the playoffs and ended the league in fifth position.

Mumbai City FC Squad

Goalkeepers: Phurba Lachenpa, Mohammad Nawaz, Ravi Kumar, Vikram Lakhbir Singh.

Defenders: Rahul Bheke, Amey Ranawade, Mehtab Singh, Mohamad Rakip, Vignesh Dakshinamurthy, Mourtada Fall, Valpuia, Mandar Rao Desai.

Midfielders: Cassio Gabriel, Bradden Inman, Ahmed Jahouh, Raynier Fernandes, Rowlin Borges, Vinit Rai, Naorem Tndomba Singh, Chanso Horam, Asif Khan, Apuia Ralte.

Forwards: Vikram Partap Singh, Gurkirat Singhm Igor Angulo, Pranjal Bhumij, Bipin Singh, Diego Mauricio, Lallianzuala Chhangte.

Mumbai City FC Matches

8 April: Mumbai City vs Al-Shabab

11 April: Al-Quwa Al-Jawiya vs Mumbai City

14 April: Al Jazira vs Mumbai City

18 April: Mumbai City vs Al Jazira

22 April: Al-Shabab vs Mumbai City

26 April: Mumbai City vs Al-Quwa Al-Jawiya