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A 12-minute hat-trick by Noah Sadaoui and a late strike by Carlos Martinez powered FC Goa to a comprehensive 4-0 win against Hyderabad FC in the Indian Super League (ISL), at the Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Fatorda on Friday.
After a goalless first half, Noah turned the tide early on in the second period, before Martinez wrapped up the proceedings with a slick finish of his own. Goa head coach Manolo Marquez made as many as four changes to the playing XI that started in their previous win over Bengaluru FC. Boris Singh played as a full-back for the first time this season, paving the way for Mohammad Yasir to feature as a wide midfielder. Jay Gupta and Borja Herrera returned to replace Narayan Das and Noah, while Ayush Chhetri was preferred over Rowllin Borges as Carl McHugh's partner in midfield. The hosts then started the first half strongly, launching wave after wave of attacks that kept the Hyderabad defence on their toes. Captain Brandon Fernandes came close to finding the back of the net in the first 15 minutes itself, but was unlucky to see his first attempt parried away by opposition goalkeeper Laxmikant Kattimani before another one slipped past him and crawled all the way across the goal line. Except for a singular occasion when Abdul Rabeeh almost gave the Nawabs an unexpected breakthrough, FC Goa thus maintained their momentum throughout the first half, although they did not have a goal to show for it. Noah then changed that completely, coming on from the bench following the change of ends. In a span of 12 minutes, the Moroccan international netted a hat-trick, with goals in the 47th, 54th and 59th minutes, and a match that could have gone either way was firmly in the Gaurs' cusp by the hour-mark. Two of those occasions saw Yasir assisting the 30-year-old, taking his own tally of goal contributions to five since signing with the Men in Orange in the last week of January. A fourth goal was then added to the FC Goa scoresheet by Carlos Martinez, in the 84th minute, thereby completing a fine victory for the team. With 39 points from 20 games, Manolo Marquez and his boys, though currently in fourth place, are tied on points with second-placed Odisha FC and Mohun Bagan Super Giant in third. Next up for them now, will be a crucial clash against Jamshedpur FC on the latter's home turf, next Tuesday. (ANI)
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