Bhubaneswar (Odisha) [India], May 3 (ANI): FC Goa (FCG) will play their second Kalinga Super Cup final on Saturday, taking on fellow Indian Super League (ISL) side Jamshedpur FC (JFC) at the Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar, according to an official ISL website.
The Gaurs (FCG) who won the trophy back in 2019 with a win over Chennaiyin FC in the final are aiming to become the first team to win the Super Cup on more than one occasion.
Manolo Marquez’s team finished second in the league and were knocked out by Bengaluru FC in a dramatic semi-final tie in the ISL Cup and will be looking to be third-time lucky and pick up silverware this season.
Up against the Gaurs will be Jamshedpur FC who are looking to win their first-ever Super Cup and a second-ever title following their ISL League Shield triumph in 2021-22.
FC Goa have been pretty much flawless in the campaign so far winning all three matches inside 90 minutes to book a place in the final. Here’s a look back at their journey.
FC Goa faced I-League side Gokulam Kerala in the Round of 16 of the Kalinga Super Cup and had no problems getting past the Kerala side. Powered by an Iker Guarrotxena hat-trick, Marquez’s men raced to a 3-0 win.
A penalty in the 24th minute kicked things off for the Gaurs and Guarrotxena who doubled his and his team’s tally just nine minutes later.
It took Marquez’s men to fully extinguish Gokulam’s resistance as Guarrotxena completed his hat-trick in the 71st minute to send FC Goa through.
The quarter-final presented a sterner challenge for FC Goa as Punjab FC who had knocked out hosts Odisha FC with a comfortable 3-0 win in the previous round were scripting another triumph over a team that finished above them in the ISL table this season.
After a goalless first half, the Shers’ plans appeared to be bearing fruit when Ezequiel Vidal fired them in front in the 57th minute. Punjab FC resisted FC Goa’s efforts to claw their way back into the game and just when it seemed that the north-Indian side would get the better of their opponents, Borja Herrera popped up with an equaliser one minute from time.
The late goal broke Punjab FC’s resolve allowing FC Goa to go on and grab a late winner in the third minute of stoppage time through Mohammad Yasir who had come on as a substitute 12 minutes earlier.
FC Goa’s passage through to the semi-finals was all but confirmed when youngster Pramveer received his second yellow card in the fifth minute of stoppage time reducing Punjab FC to ten men. Marquez’s men held on to book a date against ISL Champions and Cup winners Mohun Bagan Super Giant.
FC Goa faced their biggest challenge against Mohun Bagan Super Giant as the treble-chasing Mariners were in the waiting in the semi-finals. Having already beaten Churchill Brothers and Kerala Blasters FC, Mohun Bagan Super Giant were in red-hot form.
But FC Goa took the game to the Kolkata Giants from minute one and were rewarded in the 20th minute when Brison Fernandes opened the scoring. However, their joy didn’t last long as Mohun Bagan Super Giant equalised through Suhail Bhat just three minutes later.
The two sides went into the break level-pegging but it was FC Goa who emerged from the tunnel with more purpose and regained the lead through Guarrotxena in the 51st minute.
Just seven minutes later, Herrera added a third goal for the Gaurs who had breathing space. FC Goa controlled proceedings pretty well in the remainder of the match to see off a huge challenge from the Mariners and book a place in the final of the Kalinga Super Cup 2025. (ANI)
Disclaimer: This story is auto-generated from a syndicated feed of ANI; only the image & headline may have been reworked by News Services Division of World News Network Inc Ltd and Palghar News and Pune News and World News
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