“We did not press them high and it caused problems,” says FC Goa boss Carlos Pena after 3-1 defeat against Kerala Blasters

FC Goa suffered a 3-1 defeat against Kerala Blasters in their latest Indian Super League clash at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Kochi. It was an off day at the office for the Gaurs but head coach Carlos Pena backed his players and hailed their spirits for not giving up till the final whistle even though they lost a crucial game.

It was a very cagey affair in the first half as both teams tried to assert their dominance in possession. However a 42nd minute strike from Adrian Luna saw the hosts go ahead in the game. Stunned by the goal, the Gaurs were clearly on the backfoot as they conceded again right at the injury time in the first half when

Dimitrios Diamantikos doubled the lead. Things got even more interesting in the second half as FC Goa tried their heart out but failed to break open the Kerala defense. However the highlight of the day was Ivan Kalyuzhnyi’s long range banger which was a spectacle to marvel at. The Ukrainian was effortless with his strike from distance as the ball rocketed into the top corner. Noah Sadaoui did score a consolation goal for the visitors but it was not enough for the Gaurs.

Speaking about the match, Pena shared how his team missed an opportunity to press the Blasters and it came back to haunt them as the hosts fluidly created chances and created problems for Pena’s men. “I think in the first half, we conceded (in) too many transitions and we knew that they were dangerous in that phase. Of course, we had some troubles. We didn’t counter press them properly. We didn’t press them high, and it caused us some problems,” Pena stated.

The Spaniard felt that the second half was much better for them as he opened up the play by using Redeem Tlang and Noah Sadaoui more and hence they created chances. But a poor first half meant that they were always lagging behind. “In the second half, we played better. We opened the pitch with two wingers (Redeem Tlang and Noah Sadaoui). We could link better with them and we create some chances. But we couldn’t create much in the first half,” Pena added.

When quizzed why he did not deploy his foreign defenders he shared how they are still in the recovery stage and he doesn’t want to risk them. “They (Marc Valiente and Fares Arnaout) are recovering. They came from injuries and we decided not to risk them. Regarding Gama, he has to do some tests. We need some days to have a (clear) news,” he answered.

Lastly when asked about the shocking decision of removing Brandon Fernandes, who has been a very consistent performer for FC Goa overs the years with Redeem Tlang, Pena highlighted how it was a tactic used by him to stretch the defence and reinforce the wide areas as nothing impactful was happening through the middle.

“We thought we needed more players (between) the lines and out wide. We decided to put Redeem and find Iker (Guarrotxena). Iker and Brandon (Fernandes) were not comfortable in the middle, so we preferred to open the pitch and try to attack in another way. I think we did good on some moments, but it was not enough because they had big advantage (with the score line),” he concluded.

FC Goa will now face ATK Mohun Bagan at home on 20th November and the Gaurs will look to bounce back from this heavy defeat and will look to put up a stronger fight against the Mariners.