By IANS
Margao : Dempo coach Armando Colaco is wary of Sporting Clube de Goa’s resurgence as both the teams are going to face each other in 11th round of the I-League football tournament here Sunday.
Dempo, unbeaten in 10 matches, are five points clear at the top. But, coach Armando will leave nothing to chances when his side meets Sporting.
“We must give Sporting Clube the respect they deserve,” Armando Colaco told IANS after a light training session at the club’s university ground training centre.
Sporting Clube, after a shaky start, are on a three match-winning streak having scalped Air India, East Bengal and Mohun Bagan in successive games.
“Sporting Clube is a dangerous side. They have proved that they can upset the best in business,” disclosed Armando.
In the first leg, Dempo were saved by a fag end Roberto Mendes free kick as the overwhelming favourites laboured to solitary goal victory over Sporting Clube.
Armando said, both on paper and form, his side was the better of the two, but the drop intensity could be a stumbling block.
“After a high intensity match against Churchill Bros, the boys are bound to take it easy. We must remain guarded against complacency.”
Dempo have been dealt with a potentially decisive blow after goalkeeper Satish Kumar had to be operated on his index finger.
The Dempo goalkeeper injured his finger during the I-League clash with Churchill Brothers Sports Club Thursday. He was rushed to a nearby hospital after the match and was soon operated.
“Satish will be out for a minimum of three weeks. His absence is a big blow, but we have enough in reserve to overcome the deficit,” disclosed Armando.
Abhijit Mondal will stand between the posts for Sunday’s clash with Sporting Clube.
Sporting Clube on the other hand are quietly preparing for another major scalp.
“We can definitely get something out of the game tomorrow (Sunday). We have planned to catch Dempo by surprise,” Sporting coach Clifford Chumwuma told IANS.
Catching Dempo by surprise will not be all that easy. But after three successive scalps, Sporting fans can continue to expect the unexpected.