Juan Pedro Benali disappointed after draw against Odisha FC, says they made some silly mistakes

NorthEast United FC head coach Juan Pedro Benali shared his disappointment after a 2-2 draw against Odisha FC at the Kalinga Stadium, Bhubneshwar in the ongoing Indian Super League on Monday.

After no goals in the first half, the visitors took the lead twice in the second half but the Kalinga Warriors equalized on both occasions. Alaaeddine Ajaraie continued his goalscoring spree as he scored in the 67th minute to put his team in front.

However, Thoiba Singh equalized for the home team after 11 minutes. The Moroccan once again gave a lead to the tourists but Isak Vanlalruatfela equalized for the hosts in the injury time.

“Well, we’re not happy, we’re supposed to win the game. We take one point, a very difficult point, and we go home. And now, looking forward,” Benali said in the post-match press conference.

“We made some silly mistakes. We just stopped working on what we did all the game. We said it’s finished and in the critical phase; we get the draw. One point is not easy to get here. Happy to leave them on the back, and we need to look forward to the next game,” he said.

Meanwhile, Ajaraie has been in stellar form for NorthEast United FC as he has scored 18 goals and has provided five assists in the ongoing ISL season.

Showering praise on the striker, the Spaniard said, “He’s a great player. He knows how to position himself and the players; they start to know him very well, and they’re looking for him all the time.”

NorthEast United FC had only 36% possession but they took six shots on target, two more than the opposition.

“Yeah, the fair result was three points for us, but well, they (Odisha FC) didn’t create too many chances,” he stated.

“We created more, but sometimes creating chances is not enough. We need to score and we need to defend our goal,” Benali concluded.

NorthEast United FC will next take on the defending champions Mumbai City FC at the Indira Gandhi Athletic Stadium, Guwahati on Friday.