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Mumbai City FC have announced the appointment of Petr Kratky as their new head coach following the departure of Des Buckingham to Oxford United.
Kratky was the assistant coach of Melbourne City and has signed a contract that will last him till the end of the 2024-25 season. He continues his journey in the City Football Group, where he has been for the last seven seasons.
The former right-back, who has plied his trade for big Czech clubs like Mlada Boleslav and Slovan Liberec, Kratky will add a lot of depth to the Islanders' set-up with his immense experience.
"I am excited to embark on this new opportunity at Mumbai City FC and to continue working as part of the City Football Group," he said in a statement. "One thing that I value most within CFG is that we are aligned by the same vision and philosophy which is centred around playing the City Way."
"Our philosophy has the overarching goal to succeed, and I’m very excited to get started in Mumbai as I know the Club has set strong foundations for long term success," Petr Kratky confirmed. "I hope to build on everything Mumbai City has achieved in recent years and to uphold our proud legacy of winning whilst playing attractive football.
"I would like to thank everyone in the Melbourne City FC family - they will always have a special place in my heart."
“We are delighted to welcome Petr to the Mumbai City family" - Mumbai City CEO Kandarp Chandra
Mumbai City were dealt with a massive blow when former head coach Des Buckingham chose to leave in the middle of the ISL season and take up the role with English third-tier club Oxford United.
Anthony Fernandes was the interim head coach from then till Saturday when Kratky's arrival was announced. The Islanders defeated Bengaluru FC 4-0 in their latest ISL clash on Friday.
Excited about the announcement, Kandarp Chandra, CEO of Mumbai City FC, said:
“We are delighted to welcome Petr to the Mumbai City family. In the last few years, we have played the ‘City Way’ and showcased some exciting football under two excellent coaches. However, the salience of the ‘City’ philosophy is that it stands strong on an ideology and does not rely on any one single individual.”
“We interviewed several candidates but we believe Petr is the right choice to not only ensure continuity in our footballing philosophy but also to help us build on it and grow as a football club. With his vast experience at Melbourne City, he has a deep understanding of the brand of attractive football that we want to play at Mumbai City, much like the other CFG clubs. All of us at Mumbai City are excited to have Petr with us and we look forward to working with him,” he added.
Mumbai City are ranked fourth in the ISL table at the moment with 14 points to their name despite having had a torrid time in the ACL.
