Kalinga Super Cup final: Goa and Jamshedpur face off for golden ticket to Asia

Bhubaneswar: After 13 days of relentless action, 15 contenders have been reduced to two, come the final day of the Kalinga Super Cup 2025. The 2019 champions FC Goa will take on first-time finalists Jamshedpur FC in the summit clash on Saturday.

The winner of the match will also qualify for the 2025-26 AFC Champions League Two Preliminary Round.

On one hand are FC Goa, aiming not only to become the first team to win this trophy twice but also to end their four-year absence from continental football. The Gaurs' sole campaign in Asia came in the 2021 AFC Champions League. On the other hand, Jamshedpur FC are in uncharted territory, ending a run of two semi-final losses in the Super Cup to reach their first-ever final in any competition in the club's eight-year history.

Having missed out on qualifying for the AFC Champions League after a play-off defeat in 2023, the Men of Steel now have another golden chance to earn their maiden ticket to Asia.

"For us, it's very important because it would be the first time that we qualify for an Asian competition, so we'll try to give our best," said Jamshedpur FC head coach Khalid Jamil in the pre-match press conference on Friday

His counterpart, FC Goa head coach Manolo Marquez, said, "When you have this opportunity (to qualify for Asia), obviously you have to be very motivated. FC Goa already played in the Champions League four years ago. Jamshedpur never did. But both teams would want to make it to this competition."

It would be the fourth meeting between FC Goa and Jamshedpur FC in the Super Cup, making it the joint most-played fixture in the tournament's history. If the past three matches, where a staggering 21 goals were scored, are anything to go by, one can definitely expect fireworks on Saturday as well. The Gaurs came out on top in both quarter-final clashes in the 2018 and 2019 editions, winning 5-1 and 4-3, respectively. In the 2023 group stage in Kozhikode, the Red Miners bagged a 5-3 victory.

However, this season in the ISL, Jamshedpur did the double over Goa, winning 2-1 in Fatorda and 3-1 at the Furnace.

"Every game is different," said Marquez. "We can say that we finished second, and Jamshedpur finished 10 points below us, but we lost both games against them. They were much better than us in Jamshedpur. In Goa, maybe in the first half we were better, and they were better in the second. Now, it's a final, and I think that it's not important what happened in the past."

Jamil, concurring with Marquez, said, "It is absolutely correct that this is a totally different game. We have to be strong. We must know that we are going to play against a good team, which I give a lot of respect to because they are technically very strong. So, we have to give our best."

Jamshedpur FC, who had the second-worst defence in the ISL, letting in 46 goals this season, have surprisingly not conceded a single one in their three games so far in the Kalinga Super Cup. Jamil's side beat Hyderabad 2-0, NorthEast United on penalties after a goalless draw, before nicking a 1-0 win over Mumbai City in the semi-final. En route to the final, Goa beat Gokulam Kerala 3-0, Punjab FC 2-1 and Mohun Bagan SG 3-1. With both teams having lost the ISL semi-finals, the Kalinga Super Cup final is perfectly poised for them to win the trophy and end the season on the best note.

"Fifteen teams tried to win the tournament. We knew that we had to win four games and, thanks to the team, we've already won three. There are no easy games here. Let's see what happens," said Marquez.

The final will be telecast live on Star Sports 3 and streamed on JioHotstar. (IANS)

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