ISL 2022-23: Surprised to see people come from Mumbai and Hyderabad, the atmosphere was fantastic: Hyderabad FC head coach Manolo Marquez

Hyderabad FC head coach Manolo Marquez was surprised to see people travel from Mumbai and Hyderabad and he revealed that the atmosphere was fantastic after both teams played a humdinger contest of 3-3 at the Shree Shiv Chhatrapati Sports Complex in Pune.

The crowd has been welcomed back into the stadiums after two years due to the Covid-19 pandemic and the excitement among the fans to catch their beloved teams in action is sky-high.

And the contest also didn’t disappoint as the defending champions Hyderabad FC and Mumbai City FC played a match, which went down to the wire and thus kept the fans on the edge of their seats. A total of six goals were scored as both teams shared a point apiece.

Manolo Marquez said in the post-match press conference, “​​Yes, I agree, it was a good game for the fans, maybe for the coaches. I think this is the first time in three years that we conceded three goals in one game except when we played with ten or eleven players with Covid against JamshedpurFC where we didn’t have enough players to field. I think it was an incredible game for the spectators because even though they scored first, we scored back with two, but then they equalised twice. Finally, the score is fair because both teams played looking for a win and it ended out to be a draw.”

Speaking on the fans’ support, the Spaniard was delighted to notice the spectators turn up in numbers to support their favorite team.

He said, “Yes, this is the best. The last two years, not only for the crowd but for the health of everyone, the world suffered from the disaster of the (Covid) pandemic. However, now it seems that we are coming back to the field with the fans, it was a fantastic atmosphere in Kochi and another fantastic atmosphere in Bengaluru. It is true that we had to play in Pune, but I was surprised that a lot of people who came from Mumbai – which is close by – but also from Hyderabad, even from Pune. I think that it was a very good atmosphere. Two days ago, I was thinking that it would be another game like in the bio-bubble, but it was impossible to speak with the players on the pitch because the spectators were cheering loudly throughout the game.”
The Spaniard added that his team bounced back in style in the second half as they came up with a much-improved show.

Hyderabad FC gaffer said, “I think we entered the second half in a good way. Some players, such as Yasir (Mohammad), played a fantastic game. I think that I’m extremely happy with the performances of some players because we had a difficult pre-season, and now I am very satisfied with the performance of the team. Our team stuck together in the best as well as the worst moments, which is very difficult to do.”

Hyderabad FC will play their second game against NorthEast United FC at the Indira Gandhi Athletic Stadium, Guwahati on Thursday.