FC Goa head coach Zico looked visibly upset at the post-match press conference after his side bowed out of the Hero Indian Super League via the tie-breaker. Goa went down 2-4 in the shootout to Atlético de Kolkata at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Fatorda, Goa, who will now meet Kerala Blasters FC in the final. The Brazilian legend however insisted that there were positives to take from his team’s campaign in the league. “The feeling in the camp is that of positivity. We set out to win today but that did not happen. It wasn’t possible to give this gift to the fans,” he said dejectedly.Questioned on the lottery that is a penalty shootout, the Brazilian was quick to point out that it is a part of the game and could not be helped. “It’s all a part of the game. (André) Santos and (Zohib) Amiri practiced hard to take their penalties. We shouldn’t have allowed it to reach penalties in the first place. We created numerous chances again but were unable to take any,” he reflected.Launching a scathing attack on the quality of refereeing in the tournament, the former Seleçao playmaker was critical of the man with the whistle for this crunch match. “This was the same referee who refereed the match between Kerala and Kolkata where Luis García was disallowed a goal. Maybe, he wanted to make amends when he denied Santos a clear penalty. I don’t understand how this referee was given this game. Even in the last league match, Bruno (Pinheiro) was sent off unfairly and today this happened,” he observed. .Questioned about the opposition game plan, Zico replied, “Kolkata marked us well tonight. We tried hard. (Jan) Šeda barely had to make a save during the match. Their goalkeeper had a good game. But we just couldn’t take our chances. They didn’t have Fikru (Teferra) in the side as well. They lost a bit of power in their forward line. It was clear that their game plan was to play for penalties and it worked out for them.”On the possibility of returning to coach the team next season, Zico revealed that he has been approached by the owners and would consider it. “I want to come back, yes. They’re interested in me for another two years. I go on holidays now. I’ve been away from my family for a long time. I will reply to the owners after my vacation. My desire and theirs is for me to stay,” he confirmed.Summing up his experience in the tournament, Zico said, “I would like to say that these four months have been amazing and I have spent some really good moments here. I received so much love from all the people in Goa and from India. All the players worked very hard and were very professional. I had a wish to give the people of Goa the gift of a place at the ISL final, but this is how football is. These things happen but life has to go on.”Holding forth on the vagaries of the beautiful game, Zico stated, “Football is a beautiful, emotional game that touches our heart. Even the Kolkata coach, I hear, had some health problems, and I hope he is fine and his health recovers. Everything that we work with, which involves emotions, is beautiful. Sometimes, we get bad results and we get upset, not necessarily because of the results, but because of how the results have come.”
