PANJIM:
FC Goa progressed to the semi-finals of the Hero Super Cup after a dominating victory over Jamshedpur FC at the Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar on 12th April 2018.
They will take on Bengal giants, Kingfisher East Bengal at the same venue on 16th April 2018. After a good first half display against the men of steel, with Brandon Fernandes netting the opener, a controversial call by the referee sparked a brawl with three players from either team being sent off.
With only eight men on the pitch for both teams, the Gaurs raced away with the tie, scoring four times in the second half. Season top scorer Ferran Corominas added a 20th goal to his impressive tally while Hugo Boumous netted a brace. Indian national striker Manvir Singh scored his first goal of the season after being set up beautifully by Seriton Fernandes.
With the Gaurs missing a number of key players due to suspensions, there will be a massive change in personnel for the tie against Kingfisher East Bengal. Laxmikant Kattimani had a good outing against the Steve Coppell’s men and he will continue in goal.
Bruno Colaco made his debut for the club with a late appearance off the bench. With Bruno Pinheiro and Sergio Juste both suspended, Ali Mohammed and Chinglensana Singh will be expected to deputise for them. Seriton Fernandes and Narayan Das will start in the full back positions. Pronay Halder and Edu Bedia were instrumental in helping the Gaurs come away with wins in both their matches so far. With Pronay picking up a second yellow in consecutive games, he along with Hugo Boumous will miss the semi-finals. In his absence, Pratesh Shirodkar will take the field along side Edu Bedia.
The Gaurs have a few problems in front with Brandon Fernandes and Hugo Boumous missing for this game. Manvir Singh and Anthony D’souza will most likely replace the suspended players with Mandar Rao Dessai occupying the left wing. Ferran Corominas will probably drop into the attacking midfield position and Manvir will take his place as the leader of the attack.
Considering the absence of a number of key players for this tie, the Gaurs will have a lot of work to do against an organized and effective unit in East Bengal. Japanese midfield general, Katsumi Yusa and attacker Mohammed Amna are both vital players for the Bengal side and the Gaurs will have to be at their very best to keep them in check. This promises to be an exciting tie with the winner progressing to the final of the Hero Super Cup.
