Panaji: FC Goa coach Manolo Marquez isn’t surprised with results in the initial rounds of the Indian Super League (ISL).
The team with maximum foreigners, he points out, are at the top of the table, referencing the likes of defending champions Mohun Bagan SG and Jamshedpur, while those with less foreigners – Mohammedan Sporting, for example – are at the bottom.
“The only exception is FC Goa,” he told reporters during a pre-match media interaction at the club headquarters on Monday. “Odisha FC is a pleasant surprise; their points mean a lot since they had very few training sessions. My only worry is what happens after seven-eight rounds since there will be teams who cannot become champions and others who won’t get relegated.”
Manolo’s own team has seven points from the first three matches, with just two foreign players.
The Super Cup champions started with a draw against debutants Inter Kashi at home but have chalked two wins in a row against Mohammedan and SC Delhi, both comparatively weaker side.
Now, the real challenge kicks off, starting with the away clash against a wounded East Bengal on Wednesday.
“We will now face stronger teams, a very nice challenge for us because we want to win every game. In my opinion, Mohun Bagan and East Bengal are the two top teams in the competition.
Maybe you can add Jamshedpur because they are very strong with six foreigners. They’ve already defeated two very difficult teams (Punjab and East Bengal).
“Jamshedpur will play nine games at home, while Goa have six. I don’t understand the reason for this (arrangement). The Jamshedpur-Goa clash is played away; if it was in Goa, then we would have seven (home games) and Jamshedpur eight. It’s very easy to solve this situation, but now, it’s okay (since the fixtures are already done).”
With seven points from the first three games, Goa have had smooth sailing. All four goals have come through the two foreign players: Dejan Drazic and Pol Moreno. Indians have come close but lacked the final touch.
Manolo isn’t worried. “Except Mumbai (City) and NorthEast (United), foreigners are scoring everywhere, including the lone goal at Odisha (scored by Carlos Delgado, the only foreign player in the team). I am happy with seven points out of nine so far.”
His own decisions, though, is what bothers the experienced Spanish coach.
For the first three games, Manolo has been predictable with his starting 11, making just one change in every game. If it was Prachit Gaonkar in midfield for the opener against Kashi, Sahil Tavora stepped into his boots for the second. When Muhammed Nemil was injured, Ishan Pandita was an automatic choice. The rest of the squad remained unchanged.
“I need to be braver,” said Manolo. “Renedy (Singh) is very brave at Bengaluru. You can criticise (his decisions) but he is fielding (young) players and they will be very grateful next season for the time they got on the field. Sometimes coaches are scared to make changes. When we are winning, we think why do I need to change?
“At FC Goa, we are repeating the same team. Some players on the bench deserve more minutes. Obviously, it’s difficult when you are winning every game, have clean sheets. You can do one or two changes. But if you want to keep the players motivated and improve training sessions, you need to involve 18-19 players. I think we need to do this as soon as possible. I don’t know about East Bengal, but for sure in the next games, we will see new faces in the lineup. Even with three-four changes, the team will still be competitive.”
