Kalinga Super Cup: Mumbai City FC have to forget the past, says Brandon Fernandes ahead of opening game

Bhubaneswar, April 21 (IANS) With a Round of 16 clash against Chennaiyin FC on the cards in their opening game of the Kalinga Super Cup 2025 on Wednesday, Mumbai City will be hoping to forget the 0-5 thrashing they suffered at the hands of Bengaluru FC in ISL playoffs on March 29.

Ahead of their opening clash against the Chennai based franchise, midfielder Brandon Fernandes faced the media in the pre-game conference and gave his thoughts on the mindset of his side heading into the game.

“We are obviously not very happy how we ended our ISL campaign. ISL was obviously a big learning for us and as a team, we had to get together and work towards the Super Cup. And obviously, it's something that we want to achieve to end the season well. And yes, we have to forget what happened in the past and look forward to the games ahead,” Brandon told IANS when asked about what conversation the team has had regarding the loss against BFC.

After lifting the ISL trophy in the 2023-24 season, Mumbai’s season was marred by inconsistency and injuries. The side has been solid defensively having conceded the third least amount of goals in the league but their lack of goals saw them finish sixth in the league table and just managed to secure a pathway to the Playoffs.

Asked if he believes his side is better suited to knockout football, head coach Petr Kratky replied, "It's a different competition. We obviously analyse the season behind us and we try to work on that and build on what was good and also improve what needs to be improved. So again, we need to be solid like defensively but also be dangerous offensively and score goals. It's all about application and keep doing the good things through the tournament."

--IANS

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