As the Indian Super League for football is getting nearer, we will discuss various teams participating in it and today it’s the turn of ISL Team – FC Goa. So let us know about the team FC Goa in this ISL team profile. Remember this team profile will be updated regularly so you need to keep on visiting this page often and remain updated.
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ISL Team – FC Goa
Brief Information about FC Goa
- Full Name: Football Club of Goa
- Nickname(s): The Gaurs
- Founded in: 26 August 2014
- Home Ground: Fatorda Stadium, Margao, Goa
- Capacity: 20,000
- Head Coach: Sergio Lobera
- Affiliation: Indian Super League
- Official Website: https://fcgoa.in/
How FC Goa Was Found?
As per the announcement made earlier in the year 2014 by the All India Football Federation (AIFF) that it is inviting bids for ownership of nine cities across India to have a football team in association with IMG-Reliance, one of India’s biggest industrialist Venugopal Dhoot of Videocon along with Dattaraj Salgaocar and Shrinivas Dempo decided to bid for the Goa franchise.
They won the bidding for FC Goa and the club was launched in August 2014 at Goa Marriott Resort & Spa in Miramar. Later in September 2014, Virat Kohli was unveiled as of the co-owner of the club, and Varun Dhawan as their brand ambassador. FC Goa became the first Indian club to launch its TV channel named ‘FC Goa TV’ on Videocon D2H.
FC Goa signed Brazilian football Zico as their head coach in September 2014 and in the same month they confirmed former Arsenal player and premier league winner Robert Pires as their marquee player.
Zico Era (2014-2016)
FC Goa played their first match of 2014 against Chennaiyin FC where they lost the game by 2-1 on their home ground. It even got worse as they lost four out of the first six matches played but came back strongly in the second half of the season and won six matches in their last eight encounters of the season and finished 2nd in the table with 22 points. By finishing second they qualified for the playoffs and were drawn against ATK in the semi-finals. FC Goa played very well but failed to score goals in any of the two legs and ended both the legs on an aggregate score of 0-0. The game then advanced to the penalty shootout where FC Goa lost the shootout by 4-2.
After a good run in the 2014 season, Zico continued to be the head coach for the second successive year. Zico lined up a pretty impressive team with players like Reinaldo Oliveira, Leonardo Moura, and former La Masia youth product, Joffre Mateu who won the first season with ATK. The only international player retained Gregory Arnolin and also retained some familiar Indian origin faces like Goan wingers Mandar Rao Dessai and Romeo Fernandes, and goalkeeper Laxmikant Kattimani.
FC Goa started the 2015 season with a commanding win of 2-0 against Delhi Dynamos and set the tone for the 2015 ISL season. Under Zico’s guidance, FC Goa played an attacking football mindset and finished the season as the table-toppers with 25 points and 7 victories along the way. On the route of the semi-finals, FC Goa scored 29 goals in the regular season and was the team with the most goals in that season. In the regular season, the Guars earned the record with most goals in a single match when they defeated Mumbai City FC by 7-0 on November 17, 2015.
In the 2015 semi-finals, FC Goa clashed with Delhi Dynamos and went on to defeat them by 3-1 on aggregate at the end of two legs. This provided them with the chance to compete in the finals against Chennaiyin FC where after giving their all in the game FC Goa had to taste defeat by 3-2.
In July 2016, it was announced that Salgaocar and Dempo stepped down from the ownership of the club and on 25 August 2016, Jaydev Mody bought a 65% stake of FC Goa. Zico continued to be the head coach for the third and the final season as he had signed a 3-year contract with the club at the start of the 2014 season. The 2016 ISL season was a disappointing season for FC Goa as they finished last at the end of the regular season with just only 4 victories throughout the season. Zico did not renew his contract with the club which ended his spell for FC Goa.
Sergio Lobera (2017–)
Following the exit of Zico in June 2017, FC Goa announced the signing of Sergio Lobera Rodriguez on a two-year contract as their new head coach. Lobera went on to sign six new Spanish players in order to reconstruct and reform the side that included players like Edu Bedia and Manuel Lanzarote. In the 2017–18 season, FC Goa won their first match of the league by 2–3 against Chennaiyin FC which was also their first competitive match under Sergio Lobera, they later went on to finish the season on the 3rd spot with 9 wins and 30 points on the run. They qualified and played their 3rd playoffs within 4 seasons against Chennaiyin FC in the semi-finals where they lost 4-1 on aggregate.
In the 2018-19 season, Lobera led Goa to their second ISL final against Bengaluru FC where they lost 0–1 after a late goal from Rahul Bheke. In the same season, FC Goa won their first-ever trophy at the 2019 Indian Super Cup where they defeated Chennaiyin FC 2–1 in the finals.
FC Goa 2019-20 Squad
The current squad of FC Goa for the 2019-2020 season is as follows:
Head Coach: Sergio Lobera
Goalkeepers: Naveen Kumar, Mohammad Nawaz, Shubham Dhas
Defenders: Mourtada Fall, Carlos Pena, Seriton Fernandes, Saviour Gama, Chinglensana Singh, Mohammad Ali, Aiban Dohling, Amey Ranawade
Midfielders: Edu Bedia, Ahmed Jahouh, Hugo Boumous, Mandar Rao Dessai, Brandon Fernandes, Lenny Rodrigues, Princeton Rebello, Kingslee Fernandes
Forwards: Ferran Corominas, Jackichand Singh, Seiminlen Doungel, Manvir Singh, Lalawmpuia, Liston Colaco
