Just two weeks ago, this was a team that was having problems with the defence. That has been sorted out but it’s the frontline that is a bit of a worry for Mumbai City FC now.
Kerala Blasters FC, which has similar problems, hosts Mumbai in the Hero Indian Super League’s eighth round game at the Nehru Stadium here on Wednesday and after both the teams went goalless in their last match against different opponents, they will be eager to get full points from this contest.
Only one man, French international Nicolas Anelka, has scored for Mumbai in its last three games and his moments of magic have helped the side to its current fourth rung in the eight-team table with 10 points.
One such moment of magic, a curling free kick, helped Mumbai jolt Blasters early this month in Mumbai and the Kerala side will be keen to keep the 35-year-old former Arsenal, Real Madrid and Chelsea star in check.
The ISL is just out of the halfway mark and Kerala Blasters, which is currently in the sixth spot with eight points after the goalless draw with Delhi Dynamos, will be working hard to make the most of its third straight home match. The return of Sachin Tendulkar, the team’s co-owner, for the match should also inspire the side and bring in a bigger crowd.
Injury worriesMumbai has a few injury problems and its attacking midfielder Andre Moritz, who scored a hat-trick against Pune early in the league, will be missing due to a hamstring problem. Also, on the injury list its captain Syed Rahim Nabi, apart from its marquee player Fredrik Ljungberg who has missed a major part of the ISL.
Under the circumstances, Mumbai will once again depend heavily on Anelka to produce the goods, the goals and the assists.
“I know David James very well, I know Trevor very well and a few of the Blasters players too. I think tomorrow’s game will be one of our most difficult,” said Mumbai’s head coach Peter Reid on Tuesday. Reid was particularly impressed with the rival midfielder Stephen Pearson.
Regarding the goalless draw against Goa in the last game, Reid said, “I think we got our chances but it’s the nature of football that we miss a few. We are working on that.”
Meanwhile David James, Blasters’ marquee player and manager, said his team was playing well and the goals should start coming too.
“If you are playing badly, you’ll be looking for 101 reasons but at the moment, we are playing well and things will turn around,” said the goalkeeper.
“Of course, it was frustrating not to get those three points in the last game. If you look at the game against Delhi, the goalkeeper made a couple of good saves. It’s not that we are not creating opportunities. The shots are on target too and should be goals as well but if the goalkeeper is making saves, that’s not my fault.”
