Fatorda: FC Goa coach Juan Ferrando’s plan of fielding a changed side in the 4-0 loss to Persepolis seemed to have paid off. With most of FC Goa’s first choice players getting the rest they needed, the change in gameplay was evident right from the first kick of the ball against Al Rayyan.
Although the players knew that as a result of the first match of the day, they could no longer qualify for the Round of 16, it looked like the Gaurs had a strong point to prove, or should we say three. Right from the very first moment the ball was kicked, the men in bright orange went all guns blazing against a morally battered Al Rayyan in black.
Their efforts paid dividend when they struck goal through a wonderful display of football by Jorge Ortiz. On the other end, Al Rayyan had a decent chance next minute, but the shot went way wide of goalkeeper Dheeraj.
In the 8th minute, Dheeraj again had a lot of work to do, blocking two shots from point blank range. Al Rayyan had started their quest of an equalizer with a host of attacks and counter attacks. But FC Goa remained resolute and clinical in their play, not giving away anything easily.
In the 23rd minute, a harsh tackle by Abdulrahman Alkorbi earned him a yellow card. Al Rayyan still continued to press, and managed to get a set piece at a dangerous position. The set piece was taken well, but Dheeraj managed to save it without much fuss. The very next minute saw Ivan Gonzales get a yellow card, and another set piece, which Ishan Pandita cleared very convincingly for a corner, that yet again did not yield any results for Al Rayyan.
Even the 4 minutes added on to the first half did not help them equalize, although both teams came close to scoring in the added minutes. First off, Ishan Pandita had a chance but tried an ambitious shot seeing the goalkeeper off his line. However, the goalkeeper managed to tap it away from goal and collect it soon after
Soon after, Dheeraj almost managed to make a botch out of a long ball situation from AR by coming out of his line but Ivan managed to clear it away for a corner, which again did not yield anything for Al Rayyan.
At half time, with 61% possession, 8 shots taken with 3 on target and 4 corners, AR had better statistics but a goal lesser to show than FC Goa, with the scoreline reading 0-1 in favour of the Gaurs.
The men in black had the first chance of the second half in the 52 min, when a shot by their captain Yacine Brahimi was deflected for a corner. Al Rayyan again did not make the most of their opportunity and ended up wasting the corner.
The Gaurs had a massive chance of doubling their lead and taking the game further away from Al Rayyan when the referee played advantage to a foul against FC Goa, which was well taken by Jorge Ortiz who ended up one on one with the goalkeeper. However, before he could take a shot, the referee called back the advantage, asking for a free kick to be taken instead. The FC Goa staff and players almost went up in arms at this decision, which probably went on to change the course of the game.
Coach Ferrando then decided to make a double substitution for the gaurs, bringing on Romeo Fernandes for Romario Jesuraj and Devendra Murgaokar for Ishan Pandita, showing his attacking intent.
At the hour mark, Brandon Fernandes received a yellow card for a slightly harsh challenge on an Al Rayyan player. Further changes were in the offing in the next ten minutes as Ali Farydoon came on for Abdulrahman Alkorbi and Brandon Fernandes was replaced by Makan Chothe.
In the 71st minute, Glan Martins attempted a volleying rocket of a shot that went inches high over the crossbar, denying FC Goa their elusive second goal. Fifteen minutes later, they had another chance, but could not capitalize on the one-on-one situation.
Dheeraj in the 83rd minute was awarded a yellow for wasting time. Four minutes later, Seriton had an amazing chance where he beat all his markers and zoomed into the opponent’s box, but took a moment too long by when more defenders came to block any attempts at a shot.
After holding on to the lead for almost an hour and a half, a momentary lapse in concentration and the resultant confusion in the box arising out of a spilled save by Dheeraj off Abdulaziz Hatem’s cross allowed Ali Farydoon to tap the ball in and score the equalizer for Al Wahda in the 89th minute, breaking the hearts of lakhs of football fans in India, who were looking forward to an Indian club’s first win in the AFC Champions League.
4 minutes were added on, but the goal had already shocked and shattered the men in orange, who could not manage to score. In the first minute of added time Yousif Umar earned a yellow. In the very last action of the game, the Gaurs had yet another close shave, with Dheeraj paying the shot for a corner, which was ultimately saved again, thus ensuring that FC Goa deservedly took away at least a point from the game.
Al Wahda knocks out FC Goa even before taking the field
In the first match of the day between Al Wahda and Persepolis, an early goal by Tim Matavz in the 6th minute was the differentiating factor between the two teams, with Al Wahda outsmarting Persepolis who looked way out of shape from their earlier games.
This result for the UAE based team meant that all mathematical chances for FC Goa to qualify for the ACL Round of 16 were brought to naught even before they played their match against Al Rayyan. Should FC Goa win their last game, they would finish the group stages in a respectable 3rd position. The same holds true if Al Rayyan lose their last game against Persepolis.
Persepolis FC Coach Yahya Golmohammadi rued all the missed chances of his side, and rather than blaming his luck (considering two shots of theirs hit the crossbar), congratulated his opponents on a very fine game. He also offered his condolences to the family of an ex-Persepolis player who passed away today.
Commenting on his side’s optimistic chances of topping the group stage, should Persepolis end up losing their last game against Al Rayyan, Al Wahda coach Henk Ten Cate said he would look at the injuries arising out of the Goa match and then come up with a plan for their final game in the group.
FC Goa play their final match in the AFC Champions League on 29th April at 10:30pm when they take on an invigorated Al Wahda.
Image Courtesy: FC Goa Media Team
