CHARLES D’SOUZA
MARGAO
Head coach Samir Naik feels the Goa State team has the calibre to finish on top in the 73rd National Football Championship for Santosh Trophy, which will be held in Punjab from April 8. Dempo SC’s Jessel Carneiro will lead the Goa squad, which will leave for the tournament on April 5.
“Our preparations for the tournament have been very good. We will play against Services, Delhi, Odisha and Meghalaya, and we have put in the hard yards to get ready for these matches. Every match we play against them is important,” Naik told The Goan. “These matches will be our big matches and we will try to gain momentum early. We have prepared fully for our opener against Services,” the Goa gaffer said.
Naik time and again spoke about the momentum that a victory will give. “The momentum is key for a big tournament. The team has high hopes and the morale is also very high. So, we will try to gain the momentum from the first match and carry that till the end,” the former Dempo and India player said.
The Goan team’s inefficiency in converting goals in the qualifying round despite enjoying total domination is something the coach has worked on.
“We have paid a lot of attention to forwards in striking positions. It has been explained to them and the coach has walked them through the positioning to ensure they don’t repeat the same mistakes,” a player, who declined to be named, said.
Speaking about the team compositions, the head coach said, “I believe we have a great mix of players in this squad. There is a right balance between youth and experience and I am sure that these players will produce the results in Punjab. It is important we stick to our plans and have good outings in this championship so that we can wash away the bad memories of Santosh Trophy, which we have endured in recent times.”
Goa have been clubbed in Group A along with Services, Delhi, Odisha and Meghalaya. Goa will face Services on April 8 and on April 12 they will meet Delhi and two days later, they will cross swords with Odisha and finish their group engagements on April 16 against Meghalaya.
