Hyderabad FC played a very good first half, says Manolo Marquez

The Nizams recorded an important win against the Blues to the delight of their Spanish head coach.

Hyderabad FC got back to winning ways following a 1-0 win against Bengaluru FC in the ongoing season of the Indian Super League. Bartholomew Ogbeche was the difference-maker, whose early goal was enough to separate the two teams. Manolo Marquez’s men showed a lot of determination to keep their lead intact. Marco Pezzaiuoli’s team were underwhelming in attack and have a huge hill to climb after suffering a third defeat in five games.

Marquez interacted with the media in the press conference to reflect on the performance and express his opinion on key events. Here are the excerpts from the conversation with the Spaniard, whose team took away the three points at the Athletic Stadium in Bambolim, Goa:

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Nervousness while protecting lead

https://youtu.be/jycs8lKEL40

Bartholomew Ogbeche sent HFC into an early lead in the seventh minute of the match. Speaking in regard to whether it was too early to score, the tactician said, “I thought that we scored too early, but finally we won with that goal.

"I think we played a very good first half. In the second half, of course, the team that is losing is searching for the equalizer. They attacked a lot, they were very strong physically and finally we got the win.”

Cautious approach in second half

Hyderabad FC were less fierce in attack during the second half and wanted to protect their one-goal advantage at all costs. Talking in this regard, Marquez said, “Yes, it’s a problem. I am very happy with the players who entered the lineup. Obviously, at the end of the game, it was very difficult for them, but fortunately we got the three points.”

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On squad depth

There were new faces in the starting lineup such as Javier Siverio and Rohit Danu, making their first start for the club. Souvik Chakrabarti also started the game and delivered an impressive performance. Talking about the depth of talent in his team, the tactician said, “We are confident in all of the players. This is the history of Hyderabad FC, to play with young players. If you win the game, fantastic, if you don’t win the game, you have to try again. We are very happy with the squad that we have.

“We are happy because we won the game, but I am not happy because you cannot play only to defend your advantage if it is only one goal. Were defending practically the whole of the second half and this is very dangerous when you are winning only 1-0,” he said in the context of relying on defending the slender lead.

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