In an exciting nine-goal thriller, visitors Minerva Punjab downed Churchill Brothers 5-4, courtesy of strikes from David Ngaithe, Simranjit Singh, Souvik Das, Loveday Enyinnaya and Kareem Nurain.
Commenting on the entertaining match, Minerva head coach Surinder Singh expressed his joy over the result.
''Both teams needed points and were going for the goals. The crowd also enjoyed and I'm happy with my team's performance as they did not give up and played bravely,'' he stated.
Singh believed that his side were below par in defence as they couldn't deal with set-piece situations.
''We conceded from set-pieces. We need to work on that so as to win with a good margin. Churchill (Brothers) were very good. They have scored good goals from set-pieces,'' he said.
The three points take the Chandigarh outfit to the seventh spot, above Mumbai FC, Chennai City and Churchill Brothers. Singh claimed that the positive result in Goa will motivate his players to work harder.
Churchill Brothers 4-5 Minerva Punjab - The nine goal thriller sees Minerva squeak to a win
''This takes us to seventh which will definitely boost (the morale of) our boys. We have started scoring but we need to work on the defence. All the boys have given more than hundred per cent,'' he concluded.
On the other hand, Churchill Brothers head coach Derrick Pereira was disappointed with the result and explained the reasons for the defeat. The 54-year-old claimed that lack of communication between his players saw them commit several mistakes.
''It was a good match for the spectators but a bad result for us. We conceded goals on account of individual lapses. Communication was lacking between the goalkeeper and the central defenders,'' stated Pereira.
''A lot of work needs to be done in the defence. Overall, we have to lift our morale and get organised in our defence. If our defence was strong, we could have got three points,'' he commented.
Chennai City 1-4 Shillong Lajong - Singto and company register maiden away victory
The match was tied at 4-4 before Kareem Nurain netted the winning goal in the 87th minute. Speaking of Kareem's strike, Pereira was disappointed as his team allowed The Warriors to score the winner.
''It was unfortunate as we allowed a central midfielder (Anirudh Thapa) to get on the top of the box and we did not close him down. Keenan's position was unfortunate with the ball hitting the hand,'' explained the former DSK Shivajians manager.
Bengaluru FC's Albert Roca - Mumbai FC were wasting time on the pitch
Pereira discussed that the Goan club need to add Indian players to their arsenal.
''We need to reinforce the team. I'm going to talk to Churchill Alemao as he's planning to get the fourth foreigner and one or two Indian players. We have to improve on the fitness and understanding between players,'' remarked Pereira.
''I would opt for an attacking midfielder and somebody in the defence," he signed off.
.jpg?auto=webp&format=pjpg&width=640&quality=60)