Vikram Partap Singh, the Indian national team and Mumbai City FC forward who had his best career performance in the 23/24 season where he had 8 goals and 4 assists in 23 appearances (including the playoffs) is trying his all to regain the same form in the ongoing 24/25 Indian Super League season.
Vikram recently teamed up with world famous energy drink producer Red Bull GmbH. The forward from Punjab will be among some of the finest athletes in the world to be sponsored by the group.
The Indian national team and Bengaluru FC goalkeeper Gurpreet Singh Sandhu was also a Red Bull sponsored athelete which also owns football clubs across the world from RB Leipzig (Germany), RB Salzburg (Austria), NY Red Bulls (USA), RB Bragantino (Brazil), and also RB Omiya Ardija (Japan).
The other top footballers who are sponsored by Red Bull include star Neymar Jr and Endrick (Brazil), Dominik Szoboszlai (Hungary), Memphis Depay and Xavi Simons (Netherlands), Baris Yilmaz (Turkey), and Taher Mohamed (Egypt). Yayha Al Ghassani (UAE) and Paik Seung-Ho (South Korea) are the only two football players from Asia. Rest all of them are mostly freestyle football players.
From India at present there are cricketers KL Rahul, Riyan Parag and Chirag Suri, Badminton stars Lakshya Sen and Ashwini Ponnappa, and from hockey there is Manpreet Singh and Lalremsiami. From chess there happens to be Tania Sachdev. There are a host of other gamers from E-Sports discipline.
The 23-year-old versatile attacker has been working hard to be back to his best potential as he spoke to IFTWC on numerous question related to his career, this season and the team’s performances. Read more on what the youngster had to say in the transcripts below.
This season, you’ve made 15 appearances for Mumbai City FC, contributing one goal. How do you assess your individual performance so far?
“Whatever I had thought before the start of the season and the aim I had hasn’t happened yet, but I don’t think it’s terrible. Even if you keep the goal aside and see the work rate, effort, and quality that I brought in the games, I think it’s alright,”
“And, just for that final part, the goals are not coming, but I think once I score a couple of them and I am in form, the goals will keep coming. That’s not a big problem. The main thing is that it’s very important that I keep on playing regularly.”
Mumbai City FC has experienced a mix of results this season. How do you maintain your focus and motivation during challenging matches?
“It’s football. Therefore, not always do you get the best results, and there are always ups and downs. So I feel in between the seasons, for the Mumbai City FC results there were some delays. And now everything has gone well recently,”
“Hopefully, in the upcoming matches, the team will do even better, and I can also score my goals. And ultimately we can achieve what is the final target for me and the team this season.”
There’s been a healthy competition among players this season. How does this environment influence your performance and the team’s overall success?
“I think it’s the most important thing. Last season also, I was saying the same thing as me, Bipin [Singh], and Chhangte [Lallianzuala] We were all scoring goals, and depending upon who was scoring consistently, he was getting a place in the starting XI. So the same thing is happening this season as well, and we have a healthy competition among us,”
“In the last game [against NorthEast United], both Bipin and Chhangte scored, and I was very happy for them and the team as we got the three points. But somewhere at the back of my mind, it triggers that next is my turn, and I have to prove everyone as well that I deserve to be in the starting XI. So I feel that’s a competition and should be there in every team.”
Having trained with Premier League club Manchester City, how did that experience shape your understanding of top-tier football?
“After going there, obviously I didn’t get to do a lot on the field. But off the field, I got to learn a lot, for example, how to keep your mind stable, and not every time does it go the way you plan, but it’s important we keep going and working hard,”
“Because the thing when you get into a system and work is very vital, and the results of the system will come automatically with time. In short, if I have to describe then I learned a lot there [Manchester] from the point of view of mentality.”
Looking ahead, what are your personal goals for the remainder of the season, and how do you plan to achieve them?
“I think it’s the same for me personally and also for the team collectively. The aim for this season is to reach the finals and win the trophies. And, hopefully, in the upcoming matches, I can score more goals and contribute to the team’s victories in the way the coach wants, and expects me to play.”
With the Islanders currently on 4th position in the league table having racked up 31 points in 19 games which involved 8 wins, 7 draws and 4 losses. Although, even if we assume Mumbai City FC wins their remaining 5 matches they can mathematically reach 46 points which is coincidentally the current points tally of ISL league leaders Mohun Bagan SG.
So technically, the Islanders might be out of the league shield race, but what they can look up to is that ISL Cup which they also won last season. Also, it might sound less glamorous than the league shield which has more importance at present. But something is better than nothing and that’s the formula Peter Kratky’s men would want to follow.
Mumbai City FC have found it difficult to see the back of the opposition net this season, with just 24 goals scored so far by them. For instance the Top 8 teams in ISL league table (excluding Mumbai City FC) have scored an average of 34.42 goals this season, which is about 10 goals more than what the Islanders have managed to score in the ongoing ISL season.
Even 9th place Punjab FC and 10th place Chennaiyin FC have scored 26 goals and 27 goals respectively. Having signed a familair face in ISL who came back from a long spell in China, Jorge Ortiz Mendoza in the January window, Mumbai City FC need more threat in their Attack despite having Bipin, Chhangte, and Karelis. Can Vikram become that? Only time will say…
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