Two wins can calm things down, feels FC Goa coach Zico

Margao: FC Goa and chief coach Zico had an evening to forget after a 1-2 defeat against Kerala Blasters FC in the Indian Super League at Nehru Stadium, Fatorda, on Monday.
FC Goa led 1-0 at half-time but Kerala Blasters turned the tables on the hosts in the second-session to hand them their second successive defeat at home – also by a similar margin – and leave them at the bottom of the table.With eight matches still left to be played, there is still a chance to qualify for the semifinals but Zico admitted he has a lot of work to do.
“We need to have seven points before the start of the second half of the tournament. We have to work a lot and with two wins we can calm things down,” Zico said at the post-match briefing, reminding everyone how FC Goa had a terrible start in the inaugural edition but still made it to the semifinals.
“We were expecting a tough game. We did play the first half well but conceding a quick goal on resumption made the difference as Kerala changed their strategy and won the match. Overall, I consider it to be an equal game with equal opportunities,” said the Brazil legend.
Zico was forced to replace Goa’s most creative player, Joffre Gonzalez with Lucio in midfield, after he picked up an injury, and it impacted Goa’s overall performance.
“Joffre was not supposed to play. He had a niggle in his leg and informed me during the break that he couldn’t continue,” said Zico, who faces a selection dilemma in five days against Delhi Dynamos.
Kerala Blasters coach was pleased with his team’s victory, particularly the “terrific” match winner from Haiti international Kervens Belfort.
“A win always pleases me. We did a lot of attacking in the first 20 minutes but our opponents scored in their first attempt on goal,” said Coppell.
The former Manchester City coach was of the opinion that the home side pressed too hard in the first session which eventually took a toll on them after the restart with only three days of rest.