A depleted FC Goa side were beaten 0-2 by Al Wahda in their final AFC Champions League match tonight at the Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Fatorda, Goa. Owing to a concerning COVID-19 situation, FC Goa were without the services of all their foreign players as well as head coach Juan Ferrando.
The result means that the Gaurs finished third in Group E in their maiden appearance in the tournament thanks to three points owing to three draws.
The foreign contingent were all forced to leave for their native Spain abruptly, which saw eleven Indian players take the pitch for the first time in AFC Champions League history. It was a great opportunity for all the players involved, but when the opening whistle blew, it became clear that the team was more than willing to put up a real fight.
Al Wahda, coming into the game at the back of three successive wins were full of confidence, and bombarded the Goan penalty area with bodies in the first half, leading to a host of decent chances.
Lucas Pimenta fashioned the first really big opportunity just short of the 15-minute mark following a corner, but his tame effort was easy for Dheeraj Singh to deal with in the Goa goal.
Omar Khribin was played in and found himself one-on-one with an on-rushing Dheeraj, and as the Syrian tried to chip the keeper, Dheeraj clawed the ball away with a brilliant right hand to deny him.
Khribin did have the last laugh, however, as he got his goal in the 61st minute of the game. The forward was found inside the penalty area by Tim Matavz, and this time he smashed the ball home to make it 0-1 to Al Wahda.
Despite a stiff resistance posed by the Gaurs the rest of the way, Al Wahda got their second goal in the 90th minute as captain Mohammed Barqesh Almenhali made the Gaurs pay for a mistake in possession, his shot deflecting off Adil Khan and finding the back of the net.
In the end, the side from the UAE did see out the game comfortably, grabbing the three points and moving up to 13 points in Group E. This should be enough to see them qualify for the round of 16 behind group winners Persepolis FC who finished with 15 points.
As for FC Goa, they finished with 3 points after three fighting draws, and crucially finished third, avoiding the wooden spoon in the group which went to Al Rayyan.
Source: FC Goa Media
