ISL: FC Goa bid farewell to Brandon Fernandes, Noah Sadaoui & five other first-team players

All these players played a crucial part for FC Goa in the ISL 2023-24 season.

FC Goa part ways with seven players from the First Team following the expiry of their contracts this summer, the Club can officially confirm.

The Gaurs bid adieu to Brandon Fernandes, Noah Sadaoui, Carlos Martinez, Victor Rodriguez, Dheeraj Singh, Sanson Pereira and Saviour Gama, all of who have been integral parts of the team across the past few seasons but have now chosen to continue their respective footballing journeys on a different pathway.

Brandon Fernandes joined FC Goa in the summer of 2017 through the Indian Super League (ISL) players’ draft. The Indian international made 130 appearances across all competitions for the Men in Orange, notching 31 assists, a Club record.

He scored 17 goals as well, including the winner in the 2018-19 Super Cup final that handed Goa our first major silverware.

The 29-year-old began the recently-concluded 2023-24 season by captaining his side to the semi-finals of the Durand Cup. His three goals and four assists played a crucial role in FC Goa finishing the ISL League season in third place before reaching the semi-finals at the Cup playoffs.

Noah Sadaoui joined FC Goa in the summer of 2023 and was an integral part of the team’s attack in the two seasons since. In 54 matches for the Gaurs, the Moroccan international netted 29 times along with providing 16 assists, making him the all-time second-best for the Club in terms of goal contributions.

Spanish striker Carlos Martinez made 32 appearances for the Club last season, returning with 16 goals and three assists. Another key component of last season’s squad that reached the ISL semi-finals, Victor Rodriguez, notched five goals and three assists in 14 matches before an injury cut short his time donning the orange shirt.

Dheeraj Singh, Sanson Pereira and Saviour Gama had been part of Goa’s setup for a while now and were members of the first club squad from India to feature in the AFC Champions League (ACL) group stage when the Gaurs participated in Asia’s premier footballing competition in 2021.

Dheeraj went on to be named in the ACL Team of the Season, while Saviour Gama will be remembered for his rise from the Club’s Development Team to the First Team where he won the Super Cup 2018-19, ISL 2019-20 League Shield and the Durand Cup 2021.

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