Clean sheets not a surprise, reveals Hyderabad boss Manolo Marquez

The Spaniard also praised the performances of the Nizams' Indian defenders Chinglensana Singh, Akash Mishra and Asish Rai.

Indian Super League heavyweights Bengaluru FC and Hyderabad FC played out a goalless draw at Fatorda stadium, Goa in a game that was marred by injuries, on Saturday night. Hyderabad FC often looked like the dominant side on the pitch against the Blues, however, failed to use their chances in front of the goal. Following the match, head coach Manolo Marquez shared his thoughts in the post-match press conference.

“I think we deserved the three points. In general for me, it was a very equal game, maybe more for Hyderabad but there were very less chances and 0-0 is not unfair but if one team that deserved a win (then) that was Hyderabad,” Manolo Marquez began by saying.

https://youtu.be/4T4Ke344-Q8

Two crucial overseas players of Hyderabad FC, Joel Chianese and Lluis Sastre received injuries during the game against Bengaluru FC and had to be taken out. Speaking about the extent of their injuries, the Hyderabad FC boss revealed, “I don’t know. At half time I was very focused for the players that played in the second half.”

“Joel had a kick on his ankle and it was swelling and Lluis Sastre is a muscle problem. I think the normal thing is the injury of Lluis is longer than Joel,” he added.

Hyderabad FC did not have the full squad at their disposal before the start of the match and subsequent injuries to two overseas stars will mean that they will have an uphill task to set up teams in the next few games. Speaking about the approach to the upcoming game because of the injuries, Manolo Marquez answered, “That’s football. There’s a reason you don’t have squad of just 11 players. During the season you’ll have problems with injuries, with bans and now we have two players less for the next game. But for sure we will put 11 players in the next game.”

Liston Colaco , the young forward who impressed everyone in the last game was introduced very late against Bengaluru FC. “It was because of the style of the game. The other day it was very clear. We were 1-0 up and there were many spaces for us in the back of the opponent .Today was another game but for sure he deserved to play after his performance against Odisha. He is young and he needs to wait because he will play lots of minutes in the next game,” the tactician explained.

Hyderabad FC have kept second consecutive clean sheets in the Indian Super League, a fact for which their head coach was not remotely surprised. “We know the quality of Sana, Akash and Rai. I see them everyday and look at how they train. For me it’s not a surprise. The best thing for me in this two games is the personality of players. They are not scared and they play with calm and it is the reason that I’m very happy with,” Manolo Marquez finished off.

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