FC Goa veteran defender Sandesh Jhingan has expressed his delight after the club qualified for the AFC Champions League 2. The Gaurs were able to make it to the continental competition after winning the Kalinga Super Cup. Manolo Marquez’s team defeated Jamshedpur FC by 3-0 in the summit clash to confirm their qualification.
Meanwhile, FC Goa also finished at the second place in the league phase of the Indian Super League but could not go all the way in the tournament. However, Jhingan said the team deserved a silverware after a strong show throughout the season.
“It was massive for us to get our hands on the trophy. I think it would have been unfair to ourselves if we would have ended this season without lifting any trophy. We had a big gathering last July, where we promised each other that we will bring the glory days back to FC Goa. It was such a great feeling that how a city comes together for a collective mission. In spite of ups and downs I am so happy that FC Goa is back at the Asian level because big clubs need to play at big stages and I’m very happy to be part of it,” he said in an interview to RevSportz.
The 31-year-old from Chandigarh scored one goal and provided one assist in 20 matches of the ISL 2024-25 season. FC Goa have joined Mohun Bagan Super Giant as the second Indian club to qualify for the AFC Champions League 2. The Mariners won the League Shield and ISL title earlier in the season.
“It’s massive (Indian clubs playing in Asian competitions), when you look at the progress of the country. A country is judged by their performance internationally. Looking back at 2019 Asian Cup, we were never regular at the Asian Cup, but for the first time we qualified for two Asian Cups and then we saw the shift. Other countries started showing us respect,” he said.
He added: “We will get more international games, more exposure to show how good we are, more attention, experience etc. In a selfish point of view also, because as individuals, we want to play big tournaments, win big trophies. I am sure Mohun Bagan (Super Giant) would be aiming for a win at the AFC, so do we. What’s the point of going to a tournament if we don’t want to win it?”
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