I know how FC Goa will play against us, states Gerald Peyton

The Juggernauts could spoil their next opponents' chances for playoffs.

Odisha FC have had a season to forget. They have had to sack their head coach Stuart Baxter and have settled at the bottom place in the league with only one win out of 17 games. With nothing left to fight for or celebrate, Odisha face FC Goa in their upcoming Indian Super League 2020-21 fixture. Their opponents however have a lot on the line. Interim coach Gerald Peyton spoke to the media ahead of the game, answered many questions and gave an insight to what the fans can expect from the team.

Preparations ahead of the game

The tactician talked about the preparations ahead of the game against the Gaurs, who are fighting for the last two available playoffs spots. He said, “I am going to stay with the facts. When you look at the second-half against NorthEast, we had a higher percentage of passing. We also had 81% accuracy of pass and Goa are a great passing team. Their tactics, I know how they will play against us and without giving our tactics away, we will play a certain way.”

Need to stick to basics

Gerald Peyton also talked about starting the game strongly and gaining control of the proceedings. He said, “After 15 minutes we seem to settle down and pass or we start to get our game together. So, it is going to be important that we start the game from the off. They (the players) have to play what they see. It’s important that we play football.”

Fixture congestion

The 64-year-old reflected on frequency of the fixtures which are coming thick and fast and how difficult that can be. He expressed, “I think it's very difficult because we only finished last night going through all the details, all the good things and all the bad things. The debrief was yesterday. Now, I am starting to prepare for the training today, with all the information of how we’re going to play against Goa. So, the quick succession of games and then the physical demands of the players. I want certain players fresh so that we have legs to play well against Goa.”

Aim ahead of the last few games 

With three games left to play, Gerald Peyton revealed what sort of an aim he has set for his players. He was quoted as saying, “We are now preparing Odisha for next season. So what I’ve said to the players is ‘This is your challenge, do you want to be successful next season? Then you have to prepare now.' It's very important that you prepare now and these three games are very important."

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