Chennaiyin FC head coach Bozidar Bandovic was not at all happy with his team’s second-half performance against SC East Bengal as they were held to a 2-2 draw in the 79th match of the ongoing Hero Indian Super League at the Tilak Maidan Stadium on Wednesday.
Marina Machans took a 2-0 lead in the first half after Hira Mondal scored an own goal while Ninthoi doubled the team’s lead in the 15th minute of the game. However, SC East Bengal bounced back stronger in the second half as Sideol scored in the 61st minute while Terina Hnamte scored the equalizer in the final minute of the game.
Bandovic stated that they need to keep a positive mindset and try to win their remaining six matches to qualify for the semifinals. Chennaiyin FC have won five matches and lost as many while four out of their 14 matches have ended in a draw. Ergo, they are in sixth place in the standings with 19 points under their bag.
Bozidar Bandovic said in the post-match press conference, “I need to split my team into two halves. The first half was excellent. And the second half was not good because we didn’t do what we did in the first half. We didn’t keep the ball and of course, we made some changes, we had some problems. We cannot concede a goal like this”.
Meanwhile, it was noticeable that Chennaiyin FC players were deeply disappointed after the final whistle. Bandovic added that they will need to bring back the confidence for the upcoming matches.
He added, “We need to bring confidence to the team, we need to use this first half that we played very well with the two goals. But football is like this and we need to keep trying and keep our mentality positive and try to win the next game. Of course, it’s very painful when you lose a game like this and this shouldn’t have happened”.
Chennaiyin FC had to settle for a point when they were on their way to bag three crucial points. Hence, it was a big set back for them to lose out two important points.
Bandovic concluded, “We needed a win today. We did take one point, there are six more games and we need to keep playing and keep giving everything and try to win the games”.
Chennaiyin FC will next face defending champions Mumbai City FC at the PJN Stadium, Fatorda on Sunday.
