ISL 2019 | Jorge Costa gives up final hopes after thrashing defeat against Goa

ISL 2019 | Jorge Costa gives up final hopes after thrashing defeat against Goa

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ISL

After losing the first leg of the semi-final against FC Goa by a margin of four goals, Mumbai coach Jorge Costa has stated that they don't have a chance to change the result in the away leg. On the other hand, Sergio Lobera has said that Goa has to approach the second leg with the same excitement.

After Mumbai City FC had taken the early lead in the 20th minute of the game at the Mumbai Football Arena, the Gaurs came back strong in next few minutes to end the first half with a 2-1 lead. The team from Goa dominated the entire passage of play in the second half as they managed to score three more goals and didn’t let the home team score even one. Mourtada Fall’s brace gave him the Player of the Match award while Jackichand Singh, Ferran Corominas and Brandon Fernandes also got their names on the scoresheet.

This was Goa’s third win in the season against the Mumbai club as the Gaurs had beaten the Islanders twice in the league stage as well. After the game, the Mumbai City coach blamed the mistakes committed in the last 45 minutes for the defeat in the first leg of the semi-final. He even ruled out any chances of making a comeback in the next leg of the semi-final which will be played at Fatorda on March 12. 

"In the second half, we were making mistakes. Against Goa, with the quality they have, you cannot expect anything more than to lose. It is not easy. I don’t believe in miracles. I don’t believe we have the potential to change the result. We must go there to give our respect to the club, be professional and give our best in the second leg. Congratulations to Goa and I wish them all the best for the final," Costa said during the post-match press conference, reported ISL website.

"I would have played exactly the same team. Exactly the same eleven. It is too easy to analyse things after the game, but it is difficult to make decisions before. We took risks, we knew the problems we had before the season. This is not a result that we wanted, but I am very proud of our performance this season.”

Lobera was delighted after the dominating win against Mumbai and praised his players for putting up a great show in the first leg. The Goa coach also wanted his players to be humble in the next leg and play with the same excitement at home.

"First of all, we are very happy with the result and also because of the work of the team. But this is football. In the past, we have seen many things happening. We have to be humble and not avoid overconfidence. We have to approach the second leg with the same excitement," Lobera explained.

"Naveen (Kumar) has done a great job today. Mourtada Fall was awarded the Hero of the Match. I am happy with the work of the whole team. We had many chances to score more so I am very happy with the performance of the team. Sometimes when you approach the semi-finals thinking you have 180 minutes and then you have a second chance when you play at home – that would be a mistake. The way I told the players to approach the semi-finals is to take each game as they come."

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