PANJIM, AUG 3
The GFA secretary, Savio Messias, clarified that the Goan football team’s dismal performance at Lusofonia Games on Saturday was due to the fact that the team did not get adequate time to prepare for the event.
Messias said that as per the rules of Lusofonia Games, there was a limit imposed on the age of the players but this year, the cut-off date (regarding the players’ dates of birth) was received pretty late and consequently, the players got only one-and-a half month to prepare for the event.
Messias disclosed that given the fact that the GFA provided the players with the best of facilities like the Chowgule artificial turf football ground, good gymnasium facilities and proper nutrition and accommodation, their lack of even a single win at the Games was very disheartening. As per his conversations with some of the coaches in Portugal, the Goan team was severely hampered by a lack of organisation.
In the last Lusofonia Games, India had lost to Cabo Verde 2-0, but this time, they suffered a heavy 7-1 defeat at the hands of the same team. The GFA Secretary felt that the team’s performance would have been better if a foreign coach had been in charge this year too. When asked about the team having an inexperienced physio, he said that any football team representing India required a top class physio because they have to compete against players who are physically superior and come from countries which are above India in the FIFA rankings. Also, the hectic schedule of the Games meant that the role of the team physio was a very important one.
Since the next Lusofonia Games are scheduled to be held in Goa in 2013, he hoped that the team would get at least two years to prepare for the event and put up an impressive show, to show how good Indian football actually is.
