FC Goa clinched their first victory of the 2018-19 Hero Indian Super League (ISL) with a stunning 3-1 victory over defending champions Chennaiyin FC at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Chennai on Saturday. Ferran Corominas, Edu Bedia and Mourtada Fall got on the scoresheet for the Gaurs, while Eli Sabia picked up a consolation in injury-time for the hosts.

At the post-match press conference, head coach of Goa, Sergio Lobera was present to share his thoughts on the game. The Spaniard expressed his delight with the start his side have had this season. “We started the season playing two away matches and getting four points from those games is amazing. In the game we played against Northeast United, we dropped two points and today we achieved all three points, so I’m really happy.”

Lobera was proud of his players for putting in a formidable performance and controlling much of the proceedings with their possession-based game. “Yes, I’m happy with my team’s performance. Yes, I always said that we are an attacking side and we have proved that today. I’m happy that the players’ way of defending is having the possession of the ball, and I think today, we had like a very high percentage of possession. The only thing I’m not happy about is that we didn’t manage to keep a clean sheet today. We conceded a late goal and that’s the only thing I’m not happy about.”

Commenting on Mohammad Nawaz’s performance, he remarked that he always had the confidence in his young keeper to bounce back after a disappointing outing last time around. “I think what he did today was all because of his confidence. As I said before the match, one mistake is not going to change anything about him.”

From Chennaiyin’s end, head coach John Gregory took questions from the media. The Englishman admitted that luck was not by the team’s side and pointed out a couple of things which went wrong on the night. “A couple of times, we were not sharp defensively as we have been. All three goals could have been avoided. But, I always take responsibility for the outcome. I’ll stand and defend my players always. We weren’t as good since the goal went in, certainly not in the first 15 minutes. Maybe the team and setup I put today was wrong. Our goalkeeper didn’t have a lot to do in the first half other than to take the ball out of the net.”

Click here to read the match report.