Kolkata: On Wednesday’s winner-takes-all match against Oman’s Al-Seeb hinge FC Goa’s hopes of being assured of competitive football from September to May. It explains why Manolo Marquez said “most Indian teams would like to be in our position.” Sure, All India Football Federation (AIFF) has promised the Super Cup next month, and a league, but so far they remain only that –promises.
Win the Asian Champions League Two qualifier at home and FC Goa will join ISL league shield winners Mohun Bagan Super Giant in the main round of this new tier 2 competition. It will be the first time two Indian teams will be in the finals of the 29-team tournament that offers over $16m in prize money with $300,000 being assured for making the group stage. But we are getting ahead of the story.
Al-Seeb won the 2022-23 AFC Cup, the competition that made way for this, have 11 players in the Oman squad that is in contention for a 2026 World Cup berth and are the reigning Oman Professional League champions. “Good opponents, it will be difficult for us but for sure, it will be difficult for them,” said the FC Goa’s head coach at the pre-match media conference in Goa on Tuesday.
Al-Seeb, their Romanian coach Tita Valeriou said speaking through an interpreter, have one foreign player, in attack. FC Goa have six, three of them new though forward Javier Sivero has been in India for five seasons. “The team is balanced if we play all six,” said Marquez. But we also need to finish the game in a strong way because extra-time is possible, he said.
David Timor, the 35-year-old left-footed central midfielder with over 150 matches in La Liga, has replaced Carl McHugh. It was a tough decision but Goa decided to go for Timor’s experience, Marquez had said earlier. Odei Onaindia wanted to end his career close to his home in Spain’s Basque region so Pol Moreno, the central defender from Barcelona who was with Racing Santander last, has been bought. A first-time defensive pairing of Moreno, 31, and Sandesh Jhingan is likely though Marquez did not rule out playing three centre-backs.
The other foreigners, Iker Guarrotxena, Borja Herrera and Dejan Drazic are among the 20 players Goa have retained.
Both teams had a month to prepare. Awaiting formalities of being released from the post of India head coach meant Marquez began training on July 18, nearly one week after reaching Goa. Al-Seeb are in Goa after losing a one-off match to Al-Shabab, winners of the 2023-24 cup competition, on penalties. They also played a pre-season friendly tournament.
Winners of the Super Cup last season, which gave them a half-berth in Asia, FC Goa were among the continent’s elite in 2021. Clubs from Goa have had a good run in the AFC Cup with five-time I-League champions Dempo being the first Indian team to make the semi-final in 2008 beating a team from Oman en route. In1989, Salgaocar were the first team from the football-loving state to play in Asia when they participated in the Asian Club Cup in Muscat.
“It will be a hard game, especially because Goa FC will play in front of their fans and supporters,” said Valeriou whose team reached Goa three days ago to acclimatise. Marquez said he hoped the crowd would connect like it did in the ISL semi-final against Bengaluru FC. “I never saw before in Goa….Now we are in the Asian competition. I hope that tomorrow they will come in a good number,” he said.
This is Marquez’s third season at FC Goa, a club he has said is the best in India. Temperature fluctuations due to rain, heat, humidity, and conducting training sessions through them, had him admitted to a hospital in his first season. Marquez still does not like the monsoon but a mid-week victory could make him hate it less.
