FC Goa head coach Juan Ferrando applauded his players’ commitment in the training sessions and wants them to be confident on the pitch to secure the three points, as his side takes on Bengaluru FC on matchday 26 of the Hero Indian Super League (ISL) 2021-22 season on Saturday at the Athletic Stadium in Bambolim, Goa.

Ferrando heavily stressed on developing their playing style by playing out from the back and wants his players to follow the gameplan in order to take home the three points.

Ahead of their clash against the Blues, head coach Ferrando along with midfielder Alberto Noguera addressed the media during a pre-match press conference.

Here are the excerpts from the coach’s press conference:       

Bengaluru FC have lost their previous two matches. Do you think FC Goa will be the favourites to win this match?

Ferrando: In these matches, there are no favourites, every team wants to win the games and have the capability to win it. The games are crazy, you’ve seen the results: 6-4, 3-4; so, there are no particular favourites. Personally, the more important thing is the players, they need to work as a team, which they did in the last game, and it was a pleasure to watch them play like that.

But as a coach, I can see that the players are working hard which is the most important thing for me and I’m thinking about the next match. Favourites are not favourites, trust me, this moment is going to be difficult.

We saw a shaky defense against SC East Bengal in the last match. Given Bengaluru FC’s high pressing, how are you approaching Saturday’s match?

Ferrando: Of course, we have plans, we have an offensive and a defensive plan, we’ll see what happens. The confidence of the players on the pitch is of utmost significance. They keep calm with the ball in positional attack, they try to find space and also put attention in transitions. If we deal with these three details, we can succeed against Bengaluru.

You played the 3-5-2 formation which you’ve not tried before. What compelled you to try this formation? And do you think that this is a better formation in going forward?

Ferrando: It’s a good formation for the build-up. When we are building the game, we can use Edu [Bedia], Alberto [Noguera], Glan [Martins] between centre-backs. Sometimes, the most important thing in the build-up is the number 6, number 8, number 10 helping in the build-up. It’s important for us to try and find spaces in the build-up.

In case we lose the ball in the transition, there exists one player to press and close the spaces for the opponent, this is why we decided on this system. But then again, what matters is the players’ confidence with the ball, without the ball on the pitch, it is the most important thing for them.

You changed the defense to a back three, yet you conceded three goals. Are you worried about the defense?

Ferrando: Be it defense or attack, the responsibility lies with the entire team. We decide to press as a team, we decide to close the gaps as a team. It’s not only the job of the three centre-backs or left-backs or right-backs or the keeper to defend, no, it’s everybody’s responsibility.

Of course, we need to put more attention in some details because we need to work on our style. The most important part is the press, when they press isn’t good - when we do not have coordination in the press - then it’s difficult for the last line of defence.

Here are the excerpts from the player’s press conference:     

How important is it for midfielders to chip in goals for FC Goa to find success in this season?

Noguera: As a team, we need to help and score goals irrespective of where we’re playing. In the last match, I was comfortable with my position scoring goals, but it doesn’t matter, we’re here to help the team wherever needed and that’s it. We need to attack together and defend together.

How much has the victory against SC East Bengal changed the mood in the dressing room after 3 back-to-back losses?

Noguera: We were waiting for this win for a long time but as you know the team is always filled with confidence and we’re always looking to win each game. With this win, we’re trying harder each day and in the next game we’ll look to secure the three points.