I-LEAGUE Media Team

GOA: Sporting Clube de Goa coach Mathew Costa is refusing to press the panic button despite his team being the only team now not to win a single game in the Hero I-League.

Sporting Clube de Goa are languishing at the bottom of the pool with three points from six matches, all points collected through draws.

They started with a draw against East Bengal at Fatorda but since then have fallen down.

Coach Costa though is not unduly worried ahead of his team’s battle against I-League and Hero Federation Cup champions Bengaluru FC at Nehru Stadium, Fatorda, on Saturday.

“I was a bit worried a few games earlier but now everything is falling into place. The team is gelling together well and I am confident that we will start winning soon,” said Costa.

The coach’s confidence stems from their last game — a draw against Pune FC at the Balewadi sports complex — and although they could not get more than a point against a team that is challenging for the title, Costa knows just how good his team could be.

“We were dominating the match. Right from start to finish, the better team was always Sporting. In fact it would not be wrong to say that we should have scored at least five or six goals,” said the Sporting coach.

Sporting, though, managed just one goal through Victorino Fernandes after Pune FC had scored on the break and were threatening to grab full points on offer.

Bengaluru FC have blown hot and cold this season in the I-League. They have some really good wins to their credit but the 1-4 mauling at the hands of Mohun Bagan in the last game and the 1-3 loss against Pune FC at home early in the competition have made Bengaluru FC look fragile.

The champions, though, have enough quality to overcome any hurdle and like in the past have proved they are among the best teams in the competition. Their comfortable win against Sporting Clube de Goa in the semifinal of the Federation Cup at the same venue should give them a lot of confidence.

Match KO: Feb 28 @4:30 PM IST (Ten Action)
 

Hashtag: #SCGvBFC

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