India Head Coach Maymol Rocky believes that the early goal proved to be the undoing of her team, as Uzbekistan bagged the win.

“We were unlucky to concede a goal early on, and that cost us in the end. Our girls showed a lot of heart and played really well against quality opposition like Uzbekistan,” said Maymol. “Perhaps if we had taken our chances, the result may have been different.”

Despite the loss, Maymol took heart from the fact that the team has improved a lot in the last couple of years. “A couple of years back (in April 2017) Uzbekistan had defeated us 7-1. Compared to that, this performance is much better. We will take the positives from this match, and look to iron out the mistakes before our next game against Turkmenistan,” she added.

Uzbekistan got off to an early start after the match kicked-off as Burhanova Malika put the Central Asian nation in the lead in the fourth minute. This provided a lot of momentum to the Uzbek attack, but the defence, along with India keeper Aditi Chauhan, managed to keep them at bay in the early exchanges after the goal.

A 25th-minute substitution by India saw Jabamani Tudu replace Michel Castanha at the left-back position. India mounted a few attacks after this substitution, but the Uzbek defence managed to negotiate them.

The Indian eves came out with more conviction in the second half, with Dangmei Grace looking to use her long-range shooting abilities. Defenders Dalima Chhibber and Sweety Devi came to India’s rescue mid-way through the second half, as they made crucial clearances.

India had the golden chance to draw level with just six minutes of regulation time left on the clock, but striker Anju Tamang missed the target from inside the penalty area. Soon after, Chhibber also failed to hit the target from close range, before the referee brought the match to an end.

India Starting XI: Aditi Chauhan; Sweety Devi, Ashalata Devi, Michel Castanha, Dalima Chhibber; Sangita Basfore (C), Ratanbala Devi, Sanju; Dangmei Grace, Manisha, Indumathi.

AIFF MEDIA

Also Read: AIFF reacts post Minerva’s no-show against Kashmir

Also Read: Myanmar pip spirited Nepal in grand finale

The post Turkish Women’s Cup: India slip early and go down against Uzbekistan appeared first on Football Counter.

The Indian Women are preparing for the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Qualifiers Round 2 in April wherein they are drawn in Group A, pitted against hosts Myanmar, Indonesia and Nepal – who will host the SAFF Women’s Championship in March.

Dubbing the clash as a litmus test, head coach Maymol Rocky said, “Uzbekistan are one of the top teams of Asia and it will be a challenge to face them. They are strong on the counter and we will have to be at our 100 per cent to beat them”

“The Hero Gold Cup was a good opportunity for us to test our permutations and combinations strategically against quality opponents and we will look to do the same in the Turkish Cup with an aim of creating a final iteration as we proceed to the Olympic Qualifiers”

The Indian women had gone on an unbeaten run of five matches including wins over Hong Kong, Indonesia and Iran (in the Hero Gold Cup), but losses against Nepal and Myanmar – both coming in the Hero Gold Cup, have given room for improvement.

“We have worked on our finishing ever since the Hero Gold Cup where we faltered in front of goal. The bright spot in the Gold Cup was that we were creating chances at will and we look to continue that in the Turkish Cup.”

“We are focusing on finishing the chances we create while implementing the game plan,” Maymol added.

The Indian Women had lost 7-1 to Uzbekistan in 2017 in the AFC Women’s Asian Cup Qualifiers. Two years down the road, Ashalata Devi, who played in 2017, believes that the result will be different altogether this time.

“We have developed and evolved into better players by leaps and bounds. We also have tested ourselves against tough opponents and there is no doubt that if we play to the best of our abilities, we can beat Uzbekistan,” said Ashalata.

“It will be a tough match for us but we are prepared for them. We stunned Iran as well (in the Hero Gold Cup) and we have the capacity to defeat some of the best teams if we play to our strengths,” she added.

Meanwhile, the Indian Women will also be facing Turkmenistan and Romania in the Turkish Women’s Cup 2019.

AIFF MEDIA

Also Read: AIFF reacts post Minerva’s no-show against Kashmir

Also Read: Myanmar pip spirited Nepal in grand finale

The post Turkish Women’s Cup: India face Uzbekistan in Alanya opener appeared first on Football Counter.

Zico, Manager and Chief Coach, FC Goa

Regarded as one of the greatest ever football players, next only to Pele, Arthur Antunes Coimbra (Zico) is a legend of sorts. A former Brazilian football player, he is arguably one of the world’s best players with a career spanning over 40 years. Zico has appeared for over 400 matches in his career and coached some of the leading football clubs across the globe. The legend is now in Goa, as the manager and chief coach of FC Goa.
Zico started playing football in the Brazilian club Flamengo, appearing in the senior squad of the team for the first time at the age of 18. Gradually the midfielder became the key player in the side during one of the most fruitful periods for Flamengo (titles included four national trophies, 1981 Copa Libertadores, 1981 International Cup).

In 1983 Zico was signed by the Italian Udinese and played in the team for two seasons, even finishing as a runner-up behind Platinti in the top strikers’ rating. In 1989 Zico returned to Flamengo and in the following four seasons made 37 appearances and scored 12 goals. Zico was regularly selected to the national team of Brazil and took part in the 1978, 1982 and 1986 World Cups, overall playing in 72 matches and scoring 52 goals. The forward finished his career in the Japanese Sumitomo Metal Industries, where he helped the team to finish second in the inaugural season of J-League.

The Brazilian started coaching in 2002 when he was appointed the head coach of the national team of Japan. He led the team to the World Cup 2002 appearance and the Asian Cup title. In 2006 Fenerbahce selected Zico as a new coach. Under his helm the team won the Turkish League title and Turkish Super Cup. In 2008 Zico took the reigns of FC Bunyodkor from Uzbekistan. Later he managed CSKA Moscow and Olympiacos. After a short spell as Flamengo technical director in 2011 Zico moved to Iraq to head the national team of the country. In 2013 he signed a two year deal to coach Al-Gharafa football club in Qatar.

Zico, will manage FC Goa, one of the eight franchisee teams competing at the Hero Indian Super League, India’s top tier football league.

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