Alexandre Guimaraes started his press conference with a smile, and the tall and confident figure was a beehive of positivity about Mumbai City FC’s upcoming season.
“Since the invitation came I didn’t have any doubts. I talked to different colleagues and players who had been here and everybody said that it was a great experience. I’m really excited to be here and work for Mumbai City, and I’m excited to start.”
Indranil Das Blah, the club’s CEO then dismissed reports that the club had already signed former Manchester United and Atletico Madrid striker Diego Forlan, but Mumbai City have since confirmed tthat hey have completed the signing of the Uruguay striker.
Mumbai City haven’t had the best of times in the first two seasons of the ISL, finishing 7th and 6th in the eight-team league. Guimaraes insisted that this year will be different.
“I am very happy. The club is doing a fantastic job to get the right players for the project, both locals and foreigners. I have no complaints and have good players to work with.”
Mumbai City have underachieved in the ISL, considering the quality of their squad. Alexandre preferred to focus on the future, though and said, “I know the situation, but it’s in the past. We have a new project now, and a good atmosphere is very important to achieve the goals that the club have. This is what can make the team competitive.”
The Indian Super League challenge
I asked Alexandre how even with his wealth of management experience, he’s planning to cope with the Indian Super League, one that poses a unique challenge in terms of the short time span of the competition. How will the Costa Rican minimize injuries and maximize output?
“When I first spoke to Indranil, I said it’s very important that we have the whole squad at the beginning of the pre-season. The club is doing a great job to deliver that. Also, during the 6-week training, it’s important to not just practice but also have several friendlies. The period with the whole squad is very important. If this happens for me, Mumbai starts at 1-0.
“It’s also important to keep rotating the squad. I think the players also have to know, that this has to be their season. And for that I hope they will stretch their limits. We are here to do whatever it takes to achieve our goals.”
Guimaraes then talked about his footballing approach for the approaching season and stressed that while his recruitment policy is to target technically proficient players, the playing style will depend on his observations during pre-season.
“You have to combine styles in today’s football. And it also depends on what the game requires. From the squad we are building we have a lot of technical and skillfull players to play a good passing game. But we have to watch during pre-season what we are really capable of doing.”
The Brazilian-born coach also said that he has already spoken to Indian star Sunil Chhetri, “I’m aware of Sunil’s CV and have watched several videos of him. I have talked to Sunil and sent him a message. He’s very excited to come and play with us.”
On the reports of the I-League and ISL merger, Indranil stressed that questions should be directed to the AIFF but also mentioned that the club is delighted with how the league has been panning out so far.
“As far as Mumbai City and the ISL is concerned we are very very happy with the league and the roadmap. We think this is the right way to go for Indian football.”
Only the Kerala Blasters conceded more goals than Mumbai in the campaign last year, and the need to shore up the side’s defence is all too clear.
Indranil is well aware of this fact and the need for the team to improve, “We’re very clear about the mistakes we made in the first 2 years. Both years we had a strong team on paper but they didn’t gel and it’s one of the reasons we got our coach on board. He has a history of getting players together and playing as a unit. That’s where we’ve lacked. We want to ensure that there’s adequate team spirit and we’re competitive.”
Alexandre’s insight on the rise of Costa Rican football
Alexandre Guimaraes played a pivotal role in the recent ascent of Costa Rican football. Their national side was ranked as low as 93rd in 1996, and has since risen to 21st in the latest FIFA ranking.
“I had the opportunity of playing in the 1990 World Cup in Italy, and I think that was the time Costa Rican football changed. The coaches, players and the organization. What I learnt from that experience is that if you believe, and work hard you have a chance. During my time as a coach during the 2002 and 2006 World Cup’s we did that. Our Federation started working with younger players, similarly the fact that India is hosting the Under 17 World Cup is a step in the right direction. You need to decide what sort of relationship your players have the game and build your game on those characteristics.”
He continued, “In the process, you have to identify players and coaches that will help you to grow. In the CONCACAF area, Costa Rica have been successful because they understood what they had to do to get to a high level.”
Fostering Team Spirit
The 56-year-old manager is especially renowned for his ability in harnessing team spirit and told us how he’s planning to bring the squad together, “We have different activities off the pitch. Team meetings etc, sometimes I use movies to inspire the players. Indranil has some ideas that he’s already told me about. Everything that can help us to build the spirit of team, we will do it. To me this is very important.”
Mumbai City FC have an impressive squad again this year, including some of the best Indian players on their roster.
“I don’t like to talk about specific names. But I’m very delighted with the spine of our team, We have a great goalkeeper, a very strong central defender [Anwar Ali] and a strong forward [Sunil Chhetri]. We have the names but the mentality is important. Very recent stories of football tell us that not just names win games.”
