This isn’t the season FC Goa fans would want to remember. First they lost some key players in the transfer windows and then Coach Juan Ferrando switched sides in mid-season abandoning the ship in troubled waters.
With Derrick Pereira brought in to replace the Spaniard, the Gaurs managed to exhibit a similar brand of football on the field. Tora, tora, tora was the code word used by the Japanese when they attacked the Pearl Harbour and caught the Americans is suprise. In a similar fashion Derrick perhaps used the word which the Gaurs were familiar with….Attack, attack, and attack, but seemingly the players forgot what to do next. Unlike the Japs who inflicted a heavy defeat in 1970, the Gaurs attacked, were superior in ball possession against almost all opponents but failed to score goals and dropped many points throughout the season.
The story repeated game after game until it was certain, the Gaurs wouldn’t finish the season above the eighth position.
Though it wasn’t as bad as the 2016-17 season where FC Goa, back then, under the guidance of Brazilian football legend Zico finished at the bottom of the table; it was a more of a mixed feeling for the Goa fans where they saw their side struggling but the former Goans performing brilliantly throughout the season.
While Seriton Fernandes, Savior Gama, Leander D’Cunha, Brandon Fernandes (injured for most part of the season) failing to click; it was another batch of Goans namely Liston Colaco, Laxmikanth Kattimani, Mandar Rao Dessai and Vincy Fernandes – who were earlier part of the FC Goa team played extremely well for their respective sides in the ISL.
An FC Goa official also felt that the players who left the club performed well in the ISL with the other clubs this year.
“There are many players who couldn’t fight their place into the main team back then. But this season some of them play well for other clubs in the ISL. As a club, this things happen all over. A player might not perform at one club and can give his best at the other. I am happy for these players. But personally, I would have loved to see at least one of them still play for us,” stated an FC Goa club official.
Recently conferred Padma Shri Brahmanand Sankhwalkar stated, “If you watched the league everyone would agree, FC Goa shouldn’t have let Liston Colaco leave. As far as the player is concerned, he was great even back then. But the player and the club would have their own reasons for such a decision. Liston has grown as a great player and scored stunning goals this season. He is the best signing for ATK Mohun Bagan this year,” stated the Arjuna Awardee.
Another coach who is part of the All India Football Federation Technical Committee stated, “Goa has talent. We just need to give them time. FC Goa failed to identify Liston’s true potential and letting him go was a big miss. Everyone in Goa knew the boy was different among the rest and had bright future. But nevertheless, Liston is doing really well and it’s good for Indian football fans.”
Brahmanand, who is also the chairman of the Goa Football Development Council, felt that once the players leave the club, they tend to put in more efforts to prove their worth. “Yes, I have seen most of the players performing extremely well this year. It’s their inner/will power which drives them to give their best. They don’t want to leave any scope and they performed well,” stated the former India skipper.
