PANJIM: Goa missed the flight to Saudi Arabia as the State football team crashed out of National Santosh Trophy Football Championship with a dismal record of five successive defeats at the six-team Group stage, but the Goa Football Association President Caetano Fernandes will be there to witness the semi-finals and finals from March 2.
“I need to have a close look at the organisation of the matches in Saudi Arabia. I need to interact with several officials. Then I will be proceeding to Armenia, Madrid and Paris to scout for a senior coach who will be put in charge of the senior team basically and also over look the coaching programmes of our State teams.
“We must bring back the past glory and winning the Santosh Trophy, at one time the symbol of supremacy in Indian football, is my aim,” disclosed Caetano.
“I will bear the expenditure on the foreign coach. Also, I am deputing 16 players of my club FC Tuem to Paris for a 10-day training in April-May. I am also looking at the possibility of helping Brahmanand Sancoalcar, Chairman of Goa Football Development Council (GFDC) to set up a football academy in Tuem,”exclaimed Caetano.
Caetano added that there were plans to offer a car to each player had they to win the Santosh Trophy this time, but that the players had let him and the State down with their poor performance. Preparations must start now for fielding a very strong team for the National Games, he added.
