ISL table-toppers FC Goa have sacked Spanish coach Sergio Lobera and his two assistants over a dressing room feud, The Times of India reported on Saturday. The club, however, has not yet made any official annoucement.
Lobera had taken over from Brazilian legend Zico in 2017 and led the team to the ISL semi-final in his first season in charge and then to the final before clinching the club’s first trophy, the Super Cup last year.
The Goan club was also favourite to top the league this year, which would assure an AFC Champions League slot for them, after registering nine wins from their 15 matches and have a total of 30 points.
However, The Times of India report claimed that the club management wasn’t happy with the way Lobera was handling the team environment and there were problems between the two over signing a few players.
“The decision has been taken to ensure that the team’s campaign in the ISL is not derailed. The management was worried about the direction in which the team was heading. There were plenty of internal issues which were distracting the team from its goal of finishing on top and winning the ISL trophy,” the paper quoted a source as saying.
Technical Director Derrick Pereira is expected to take over as interim coach on Sunday, the paper said.