Atletico de Kolkata boss Antonio López Habas says that he is satisfied with his side's goalless draw against FC Goa in the first leg semi-finals of the Hero Indian Super League, insisting that this result is "better than a loss."
The Sourav Ganguly co-owned side were thoroughly dominated by FC Goa in their own backyard as Zico's side bombarded their defences with regular attacks.
Still Kolkata managed to hold on to the draw, and Habas says that he is satisfied with the result, considering they were without five of their regular starters.
"We had a very good game today. We could not score, but we created a lot of chances to find our way to the final. I prefer today's result because a draw is always better than a loss," the Spaniard told ISL's official website.
"It is very difficult to play without five regular players, so I am not at all disappointed with the result. I am happy with the performance of my team and with the result, I congratulate my players for the way they played this match."
The former Valencia boss despite admitting that the second leg at Goa is going to be very difficult, feels that Kolkata will be a little boosted by the fact that they have already won there.
"It will be a very difficult match for both the teams, not only for us. Goa will also need to score in that match if they want to go through the final," he added. "It will be tough out there in Goa, but remember, we have already won an away match there."
Meanwhile, FC Goa boss says that he is certain that his side will be moving to the final of the ISL despite being held in a goalless draw by Kolkata in the first leg of the semi-finals.
"As I have said before, it is a game of 180 minutes," the Brazilian legend told ISL's official website. "The first 90 minutes are over and now we have to see how the next 90 minutes go. I am 100% confident and I hope that we win the next match."
Zico insists that his side were prepared for Atletico de Kolkata's physical style of play, insisting that the "last phases" of any competition is always tough.
"The games in the last phases are always very compact. It is always very difficult," stated the 61-year-old. "We were expecting a physical game like last time."
