ISL 7: Lobera 'proud' of Mumbai City's 'dominant' performance against FC Goa
Nov 26, 2020
Margao (Goa) [India], November 26 : Mumbai City FC had to work hard against a ten-man FC Goa to secure a late 1-0 win in their second game of Indian Super League (ISL) and head coach Sergio Lobera was 'very proud' of the effort being put by his side on Wednesday.
Lobera's men had played much of the match with a man-advantage after Redeem Tlang got a first-half red card. But dogged defending from Goa and Mumbai's own lack of fluency looked to be taking the match to a draw.
Then, at the very death, Adam Le Fondre stepped up and fired in a penalty to ensure that Lobera got the better of his former team.
"The most important thing is to create chances. I am very proud of my players because I think the substitutions worked and the attitude of the players coming off the bench was amazing," Lobera said in the post-match press conference.
"We dominated, created chances, and finally we scored. I am very happy with these three points," he added.
The Spaniard also lauded the physical effort put in by his players during their hard-fought win over the Gaurs.
"In the last game, we dominated the match although we were playing with 10 players. But we increased the opportunities [in this game] and our level of play but it's not easy," the coach said.
"Physically, we worked very hard because it is tough working with a short pre-season. The players have made a big effort physically. I am happy with the attitude of the players to improve and keep winning, added Lobera.
In what was a surprising move, Lobera didn't start with prolific striker Bartholomew Ogbeche but according to Lobera when he came on as a substitute he did well and put the Gaurs under a of pressure.
"We needed more players to arrive inside the box. I think Ogbeche did that very well. They changed the position of the fullbacks and we created a lot of chances with this kind of football," he explained.
Mumbai City FC will next lock horns with the new entrants' SC East Bengal on December 1.