ISL 2023-24: Sergio Lobera lauds Odisha FC as they claim top spot with dominant 3-0 win
Odisha FC's head coach, Sergio Lobera, celebrates his team's commanding 3-0 victory over Hyderabad FC, securing the top position in the Indian Super League 2023-24.
Sergio Lobera, the head coach of Odisha FC, expressed his satisfaction following a dominant 3-0 victory over Hyderabad FC in Matchweek 14 of the Indian Super League (ISL) 2023-24 season. Lobera praised his team's performance, highlighting key moments such as Diego Mauricio's early goal and Roy Krishna's contribution just before halftime. With this win, Odisha FC has now claimed the top spot in the league with 30 points from 14 games. Lobera, pleased with securing three crucial points, conveyed his happiness, stating, "Today we are going to sleep at the top of the table." Looking ahead to the next match against FC Goa, he emphasised the goal of maintaining their lead and acknowledged the challenges of managing player rotations in a congested schedule. Lobera also commended Hyderabad FC for their resilience and talented young players, expressing pride in his own team's efforts on and off the pitch.
“Our target now is trying to win the next game against FC Goa. It will be amazing for us to win at home and to get the gap between the teams to six points.”
We played against a good team. A lot of merit and big respect for the work they are doing. It’s not easy to work in some conditions, but they come with young players, fast players, technical players, and they are playing with a clear idea.
On being asked about the decision, the 47-year-old elucidated, “When you are playing three games in seven days, you need to think about also the health of the players. I need to do some rotations. I need to do something because travelling in the middle is not easy. It's not easy to manage these kind of situations. I try to avoid injuries.”
“I think the team is working very well. They are doing an amazing job. The players and the numbers are there and it's very important for me as a coach, it is a big problem to decide the next lineup against FC Goa because I have six amazing foreign players, and very good Indian players,” he stated.
“At the end, as a coach it is helpful to work with these, you know, these kinds of players, also this kind of person and the professionals. It's very important to have a very good team on and off the pitch. And they are doing an amazing effort. They are not complaining about the calendar or the schedule. And I am very proud of my players.” he concluded