FC Goa at wrong end of eight-goal thriller in Super Cup opener against Jamshedpur

by FC Admin April 11, 2023

FC Goa stumbled to a 3-5 loss to Jamshedpur in their Hero Super Cup opener against Jamshedpur in Kozhikode, Kerala on Monday night.

Noah Sadoui continued his rich vein of form with two goals to his name on the night while Iker Guarrotxena scored his 11th of the season. However, defensive inaptitude meant that the Gaurs had to chase the game for the majority of the time.

FC Goa started with much fervor, taking the lead within the first six minutes of the game as the enigmatic Noah Sadaoui picked up where he left off in the Indian Super League. A swift turn from the Moroccan took out the man tasked with defending him before he blasted it past the keeper.  

Jamshedpur though, showed their steel, striking back through Pratik Chaudhari within the next five minutes from a corner to make it all level.

The Gaurs, despite having the majority of the possesion, dropped a goal down in the 27th minute. That is when Rafa Crivellaro stepped up to slot in a direct free-kick past Arshdeep Singh on his FC Goa debut following a foul on Boris Singh at the edge of the box.

Following another dominant spell in the latter stages of the first half which included the manufacturing of two golden opportunities, Carlos Pena would see his men fall a goal further behind in the dying moments of the period. With only seconds remaining till the break, an own goal from Fares Arnaout – attempting a block- helped Jamshedpur take a two-goal cushion into halftime.  

Goals keep flowing in the second half

The goals kept coming in the second period. Jamshedpur thought they had it all wrapped up in the 59th minute when Ritwik Das galloped past Redeem Tlang on the wing before setting it up on a platter for Rafael Crivellaro to make it 4-1.

Carlos Pena’s men weren’t done. Two delightful balls from Brandon Fernandes saw goals scored in the space of eight minutes to make things spicy once again as Iker Guarrotxena and Noah Sadaoui cut the deficit to a mere one goal by the 70th minute.

The Gaurs’ revival story, though would have to wait another night as Harry Sawyer played spoilsport, scoring against the run of play. The Australian was able to break beyond Goa’s defence as he latched on to a lob before getting the better of Arshdeep Singh to score Jamshedpur’s fifth of the night.  

And that’s how it finished when the referee blew for full-time.

The loss means FC Goa are in 3rd spot in Group C. The Gaurs will be back in action in the Hero Super Cup on Friday, April 14 when they take on Gokulam Kerala in their backyard.  

Also Read: ATK Mohun Bagan launch Hero Super Cup campaign with big win

Also Read: “Excited to see what these players can produce in the Super Cup”, says Des Buckingham on taking an all-Indian squad to the tournament