It's difficult to maintain a winning streak in the ISL: FC Goa manager Zico
FC Goa suffered a 2-0 defeat at the hands of Mumbai City FC which ended their two game winning run and prevented them from extending their lead at the top of the Hero Indian Super League (ISL) table to four points. The defeat kept FC Goa within touching distance of the chasing pack, while Mumbai City FC who started the day at the bottom came within three points of The Gaurs.
FC Goa manager Zico conceded that his team was up against it against a tough Mumbai City FC side after they conceded the second goal so early in the second half, but believed the nature of the competition makes it very difficult for a team to sustain a run of victories.
“In this league it’s very difficult to continue to win 4-5 games in a row. There is very little between the teams and that means any team could beat anyone in this league,” Zico stated.
The Brazilian also went on to highlight the amount of preparation time a team gets before a game as a key factor in determining the outcome of the game due to the similarity in strength of the teams.
“Since the players in all the teams are so close to each other in terms of quality, the amount of time a team gets to prepare for a game makes a lot of difference. If a team plays another team with three days gap while others have had a greater gap, it becomes difficult for the team with lesser preparation time to win and conjure up a winning streak,” added Zico.
But the legendary manager stressed the importance of remaining on top of the table despite the loss as it keeps the destiny of his team in their own hands. “Even though we lost, we are still at the top of the table and that’s important as our fate is still in our own hands. I have seen that one loss takes you down 3-4 places in this league and I’m glad that we are still top despite the loss.”
Zico was left to rue the missed chances, as Mumbai City showed greater efficiency in front of the goal resulting in them ending on the winning side and Coach Zico believed that this old cliche never gets away in football.
“If you don’t take your chances, you don’t win the match. That’s football. We didn’t take the chances that came our way today while they did and the result is there in front of us to see,” felt Zico who thought Mumbai City FC deserved to win the game thanks to their superior finishing.
FC Goa now faces FC Pune City at home in a crunch game for The Gaurs after FC Pune City sit just one point behind Zico’s men. With the chasing pack hot on FC Goa’s heels the margin for error for the Goans is minimum.