FC Goa head coach Marquez: We were better than Bengaluru FC over two legs
Manolo Marquez’s home farewell didn’t go as planned, as FC Goa won 2-1 against Bengaluru FC but fell short in the semifinal on aggregate (2-3) at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium on Sunday.
Armando Sadiku’s 88th-minute equaliser briefly revived Goa’s hopes, but Sunil Chhetri struck in stoppage time to seal Bengaluru’s place in the ISL Cup final.
“[It’s] Very tough, because I think that [for] the team, at least from the bench, it was very tough [for them]. We deserved to win this game and deserved to reach the final. We were much better than Bengaluru FC, even when at their home. But sometimes this is football, and you have to accept it,” Márquez told the media at the post-match press conference.
“We made a mistake at the last minute. I think that, in this situation, when you play in the semi-final of the playoffs, it’s very difficult to play at the level that the team played today. In some moments, my feeling was that it was closer for us to get the third goal than the goal of BFC,” he added.
With the Spaniard taking on the India national team job on a full-time basis, he confirmed that the Super Cup, starting on 21 April, would be his last tournament with FC Goa and his final chance to win a trophy with the club.
There were a few disputable refereeing calls in the match, all of which went against FC Goa. Asked to comment on that, Márquez said with a wry smile, “Don’t ask me about that,” adding that he believed the referee was inexperienced to handle a clash of this magnitude and that nerves played a big part in many of his decisions.
Bengaluru head coach Gerard Zaragoza saw his team grab the tie by the smallest of margins and said that after all the hard work, the immediate focus would be on a party to celebrate this win, after which preparations would begin as normal for the final, where Bengaluru will face either Mohun Bagan Super Giant or Jamshedpur FC.
Chhetri was at the centre of attention again for his match-winning goal, and Zaragoza said that the team is fortunate to have a player like him, but it is more about the efforts of the whole team.
“Football is about this. It’s about these inches, to be at the right moment in the right second, and Sunil Chhetri is like this. For that, we have him; we have these amazing foreigners. For us, we have this amazing defensive Indian line and the best goalkeeper in India,” Zaragoza said after the match.
Bengaluru spent a major chunk of the match defending and soaking up pressure due to FC Goa’s incessant attacking. While Zaragoza lauded the Gaurs’ effort, he said that the match unfolded as he had expected.
“The first half was exactly like what we expected. They (FC Goa) wanted to enter the game, and then we tried to control everything. They did crosses and shots, but nothing special. We wanted to finish the first half like this, 0-0, or at least score one goal. I think the first goal of them arrived too early, and that provoked us to defend, defend, defend,” the Spaniard said.
With Bengaluru preparing for the final match of the ISL season, Zaragoza signed off by saying that it would be perfect if the final took place at the Kanteerava Stadium, as winning the title there would make it all the more special.
