Unsurprisingly, all eyes were on Jorge Costa’s troops when they took the field on the 29th of December, in search of that elusive victory. Fortunately for the Portuguese, his players delivered, meaning that they overcame Hyderabad FC 2-1, despite playing a quarter of the match with 10 men.
However, the game was barred by a few instances of players taking too much time to recover from cramps and subsequently, marching off the field at snail’s pace. To that though, the Portuguese promptly replied,
Thereafter, Costa was quizzed about the quality of refereeing and the point his counterpart, Phil Brown, had made about the footballers putting more pressure on the referee. The Mumbai City FC head coach answered,
However, he also pointed out that the quality hasn’t been too great, a fact emphasized by most coaches complaining about the same. He also said that if he started to crib, it wouldn’t really help them improve and one must rather focus on enhancing themselves every day.
Over the past few weeks, the rub of the green hasn’t always gone the Islanders’ way. On Sunday though, they managed to stave off a situation of numerical inferiority to script a triumph. On the difficulties facing his side, he remarked,
Having said that, Costa also relayed information that Paulo Machado would be missing for the rest of the season. On being quizzed about a potential replacement, he quipped,
Thus, despite a vital victory on Sunday, the Portuguese was aware of the monumental task on hand, especially considering the rather overcrowded nature of the treatment table.
Yet, in his own inimitable way, Costa ensured that those in attendance weren’t too worried about the perilous predicament, courtesy his ability to methodically chalk out the modus operandi his team needed to follow: an approach where the onus firmly lies on concentrating on oneself rather than thinking about ancillaries.
And, that, more than anything else, could be the tonic to their ailments.
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