Not many things delight a football fan as much as a late rally by his or her favourite team. If achieved through the famed Brazilian attacking flair, garnished with an impressive array of goals, it’s certain to warm everyone’s heart.
This has been FC Goa’s tale in the Indian Super League. Down and out after six games into the season with just a win and a draw, the side is now unbeaten in its last six, registering four wins, scoring 12 goals and conceding one. This has catapulted the side to the second position (18 points), and a win against topper Chennaiyin FC (22) here on Friday will all but guarantee a semifinal berth.
“We have never had it easy against any team; home or away. So we expect the same against Chennai,” said FC Goa head coach Zico, whose tactical rejigs, along with inspired performances from fellow Brazilian Andre Santos (three goals and three assists) and Czech Republic’s Miroslav Slepicka (four goals in the last three matches) have been instrumental in propping up the team.
It will up against a Chennaiyin FC side, which has already sewed up a top-four spot. For the home side, the match presents a chance to rotate its squad. While Bruno Pelissari and others have filled in admirably for the injured Elano and John Stiven Mendoza, more options will always be welcome.
“It’s like a preparation for us (for the semifinals),” said Chennaiyin FC assistant coach, Vivek Nagul.
Best possible team“We can rest some players and prepare them for the matches ahead. But, there is no room for complacency. We have been (complacent) at times before. So we are aware of where we can go wrong. We will play our best possible team.”
For this, it could welcome the likes of defender Gouramangi Singh, who injured his groin in the last home match against FC Pune City, and club captain Bojan Djordjic, who has not featured in the last two games.
But the side will be without player-manager Marco Materazzi, who had flown back to Italy after its previous match against Kerala Blasters and is expected to be back only before the final game against Delhi Dynamos next Tuesday.
