Hyderabad FC head coach Manuel Marquez was delighted after his team qualified for the semifinals of the ongoing Indian Super League after they defeated Kerala Blasters FC by 2-1 at the Athletic Stadium, Bambolim on Wednesday in the 99th match of the tournament.
This is the first time Hyderabad have made their way into the last four of the tourney. This was Hyderabad’s 10th win of the season and the club now has 35 points under their belt. Thus, they have become the first time to qualify for the semifinal in the ongoing season.
Hyderabad FC’s talismanic striker Bartholomew Ogbeche scored the opening goal for the team in the 28th minute of the game. Subsequently, Javier Siverio doubled Hyderabad’s lead in the 87th minute of the match while Vincy was able to get one back for the Southerners in the 90th minute.
Manuel Marquez said in the post-match press conference, “We are very happy. First of all, if you allow me, I want to dedicate this semi-final qualification to all the players and members of the staff. We couldn’t qualify last season when we deserved it. The second thing is that people in Indian football should know that the coach of Kerala Blasters entered our room to congratulate our team for qualifying. This is the level of the coaches that Hero ISL needs personally”.
Marquez added that the team will look to win the remaining two matches of their league stage and continue the winning impetus.
He added, “The first goal was to arrive in the top-four. Now, we have to play two games. We have to try to win both. If we win against Jamshedpur FC then we can surpass them but it will depend on ATK Mohun Bagan’s match outcome. But now we are happy, we will celebrate tonight in the hotel. After this, we will think about the next game because if you are in this situation you have to keep going. Let’s see if we can beat a very good team like Jamshedpur”.
Marquez admitted that the team could have played better and the last-minute goal could have been avoided by them however he is happy to make it to the semifinal stages.
He concluded, “We are very happy this is the first time in the history of Hyderabad FC that we have qualified for the playoffs. But it’s true that in the last few games we could have played better. Today more or less we controlled the game but in some moments Kerala Blasters created clear chances. Yes, you can always avoid one goal at the last minute. But now the most important thing for our team is that we have qualified for the top four”.
Hyderabad FC will next face Jamshedpur FC at the Athletic Stadium, Bambolim on Tuesday.
