FC Goa cruised into the semi finals of the Indian Super League (ISL) 2015 after routing Kerala Blasters 5-1 at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Kochi on Sunday.
Kerala Blasters are officially out of the competition and cannot make it to the final four by any means now. Their awful run of form in the ISL 2015 continued as they could not stand a chance against the mighty FC Goa.
FC Goa have had a wonderful campaign so far and they are one of the most dangerous teams in this tournament undoubtedly.
"It was a very good game, we accomplished our mission which was to qualify for the semis. To win here in Kochi against Kerala like we have today means the players played well today. We had a lot of injury concerns and we had to play Pronay Halder in defence and he played very well. I have to congratulate them for such a performance," Zico said at the post-match press conference on Sunday.
The Gaurs came back from behind to net five goals against Kerala Blasters in match No. 50 of the ISL 2015. The hosts opened the scoring in the second minute of the game. Antonio German played a ball to Victor Pulga and the latter kept his calm to find the back of the net.
After conceding the first goal, FC Goa did not look like they were hurt. They kept on pressing and the attack index was on the rise. They drew level in the game when Jofre Gonzalez finished from an acute angle in the 12th minute of the game.
Things got heated up between the two sides and amidst all this, Josu Currias pushed Jofre Gonzalez on the ground. The referee was quick to react and sent Currias off by showing a red card. The home side were down to ten men at half time. Kerala Blasters were still in the game until half time.
The floodgate opened after the first 45 minutes. Reinaldo Oliviera scored three goals in a span of 15 minutes and that ended all hopes of Kerala Blasters. Mandar Rao Dessai also added his name in the scoring sheet after netting the fifth goal for FC Goa on Sunday in the 60th minute of the match. The scoreline left all the fans of Kerala Blasters heartbroken. It was obvious that they will be scratching their head thinking how a team that ended as the runners up of ISL 2014 ended up having such a disastrous season.
"Well, see we started the game very well, but we conceded two sloppy goals, this has been the case throughout the season. That has been the story from day one. Against a team like Goa, it is very difficult to come back. The players kept going, they kept passing the ball but we couldn't find the goals we needed," Kerala Blasters coach Terry Phelan told the reporters at the post-match press conference.
"I love the fans here. I was a part of the community here and the technical director as well, so I've been a part of this crowd. I know we have disappointed the fans but all I can say to them right now is thank you very much for coming, hope to see you soon."
FC Goa now have joined Atletico de Kolkata and Delhi Dynamos in the semi final of the ISL 2015. The fourth place is yet to be filled as Northeast United FC, Chennaiyin FC, FC Pune City and Mumbai City FC are still in the race of making it to the final four of the ISL 2015.
Watch the full highlights of the game between Kerala Blasters and FC Goa here.
