ISL as it happened: Kostas shines as Pune beat Goa 2-0

Click here for live scores and updates of the match . FC Pune City and FC Goa both have good teams on paper — there is no lack of big names — they’ve got good foreign coaches, their marquee players are former World Cup winners David Trezeguet and Robert Pires and they’ve got excellent stadiums to play their football in. One team has cricket superstar Virat Kohli backing them. And the other – Bollywood heartthrob Hrithik Roshan. But they both haven’t won in the Indian Super League so far. Both teams sit in the bottom half with a point each — with Goa slightly worse off having played a game more than Pune. It seemed that the pre-match press conference was over on Saturday when Goa’s Brazilian coach Zico went ahead and said that he wanted to add something else. He called for patience: “Things don’t happen overnight. People are used to quick results in football but we are creating chances – we’re just not taking them. I urge our supporters to be patient.” [caption id=“attachment_1772999” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] FC Pune have a point from two games. ISL[/caption] This could be interpreted as a sign of pressure, but for someone who has played at the highest level for one of the most football-crazy nations in the world — a three-match winless streak can hardly be unnerving. And he looked far from bogged down. When winger Gabriel Fernandes — also at the press conference — said that his coach was a great player, Zico quickly said: “But you never saw me play.” Fernandes then added that everything was fine in the team — on and off the pitch — the only missing element though, was luck. “We just need luck. That’s all.” On being pushed whether that was the only thing missing, he said, “Yes, just luck.” FC Goa will also have to contend playing without Pires after the former Arsenal player was banned for two-matches following the incidents on 23 October during a match with Atletico de Kolkata. Zico is expected to experiment again, admitting that there was no set strategy that he has figured out for his team. “There’s no proper system yet. Every game is different and according to the opponents and the players I have. As for Pires missing out, this is a chance for others to impress. We’re a football team, not a one-man show,” he said. FC Pune City CEO Gaurav Modwel and their coach Franco Colomba were both gracious enough in saying that Pires missing out will be a loss to those who will witness the match — but in truth, this should be seen as just the right time to get their first win of the season. The Italian-infused team was thrashed 0-5 in their previous match — against Mumbai City FC, but we witnessed a different intensity to their training — and they’ve had a week’s worth of it. “This is out first home game and it’s a big game for us. We’ve had a week’s worth of training and we’re ready. More than a change in strategy, I expect a change in performance from my team,” Colomba said. But Colomba may have to change his strategy a bit too. He went with a 4-3-3 in their first match against Delhi Dynamos which ended in a draw, and then shaped his team in a 3-5-2 in the match against Mumbai. Pune were outplayed in both games, but held their shape better with four men at the back — and we could see the team revert to that formation. But a 4-3-3 would mean strikers Trezeguet and Dudu may not play together. So could it be a 4-4-1-1 or a 4-4-2 to accommodate both players? Colomba has some decisions to make — including how to gel in midfielder Kostas Katsouranis in midfield. The former Greece skipper has had two bad games and needs to impose himself in the centre of the park for Pune to compete better. The distance between Pune’s Balewadi stadium and the pitch is very less compared to other stadiums — a sell-out crowd means an imposing atmosphere — expected to be loud and raucous with the city being home to so many students also. Pune need to impress their supporters — get out and get winning. Or at least, avoid a thrashing like in Mumbai. After all, they’re up against a team which hasn’t really hit stride either and are without their marquee player. Time to strike when the iron is hot. The writer tweets @TheFalseNo9