Mumbai City FC: Here's what you need to know about Adam le Fondre

Mumbai City FC seem to be one of the stronger teams, at least on paper, as we inch ever closer to the upcoming Indian Super League (ISL) season. 

They have revamped their foreign contingent, bringing in former FC Goa manager Sergio Lobera and a host of star players who shone at FC Goa in Hugo Boumous, Ahmed Jahouh, Mourtada Fall and more. 

They have, however, brought in three new faces to the ISL in Hernan Santana, Adam le Fondre and Cy Goddard. Le Fondre is expected to carry the burden of scoring goals and will be Lobera's trump card in attack. 

The 33-year-old striker is a fairly well-known name in England and has experience of playing in the Premier League before moving to Australia. 

Let's take a closer look at his career so far.

Debut at Stockport and excellence at Rochdale

Adam le Fondre made his professional debut after progressing through the ranks at League Two outfit Stockport County. In fact, he scored on his debut, in a 3-1 win over FC Bury in 2004. He moved to Rochdale on loan in January 2007 where he caught the eye with some impressive performances. 

Once again, he scored twice on his debut for Rochdale and even scored four goals in a game against Wrexham. It was no surprise that Rochdale made the move permanent in the summer. He played every single game for the club in League Two, helping them reach the play-offs in the 2007-08 season, ending as the club's topscorer. His form did not wane in 2008-09 as he ended up scoring 21 goals. 

Fellow League Two side Rotherham United splashed the cash for Le Fondre in August 2009 and he promptly scored on debut for them. He finished the season with 30 goals, establishing himself as a fan favourite, helping Rotherham reach the play-off final. He also featured in the League Two Team of the Year in 2009-10. After continuing his form in the 2010-11 season, Championship side Reading came calling for Le Fondre. 

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He scored 12 goals for Reading in the Championship in the 2011-12 season, playing a key role in the club securing the title and gaining Premier League promotion. In fact, he scored in a 2-2 draw against Crystal Palace in April, the point that secured the title for Reading. 

Premier League experience

He scored on his Premier League debut in 2012-13 season, a 90th-minute penalty that secured a 1-1 draw against Stoke City in August. In November, he scored a brace to help Reading beat Everton 2-1 and win their first Premier League game of the season. He also scored in a losing cause against Manchester United that season. In fact, in 34 matches, he scored 12 goals and also notched the record for most Premier League goals in a season as a substitute. 

He was named the Premier League player of the month in January 2013 for scoring five goals during the month. He was also named Reading's Player of the Season though the club could not avoid relegation. 

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In the 2013-14 season, he scored only 15 goals in the league for Reading before moving to Cardiff City. But after a slow start to life, he was loaned out to Bolton Wanderers (also playing in the Championship) in January 2015. He finished with eight goals for Bolton and was the club's topscorer. However, he was loaned out again at the start of the 2015-16 season by Cardiff, this time to Wolves. 

He struggled at Wolves and when he came back to Cardiff in 2016 summer, he was deemed surplus to requirements. He would end up joining Wigan Athletic and Bolton Wanderers on loan before joining the latter on a permanent deal in 2017. 

But after a year, he left for Sydney FC in the A-League where he spent two seasons. 

International football

Adam le Fondre has not featured for the English national team at any level. 

Last stint

Le Fondre was at Sydney FC for two years after signing in August 2018. He made an instant impact at Sydney, scoring 16 goals to end up as the second-highest goalscorer behind Roy Krishna. But his goals powered Sydney to the title. He scored twice in the 6-1 semifinal win over Melbourne Victory and scored from the spot in the penalty shootout which determined the winner in the final.

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In the 2019-20 season, he stepped it up a gear. He scored 20 goals this time around, including a hat-trick, as Sydney FC won the title again. Once again, he scored in the 2-0 semifinal win against Perth Glory.