Stephen Constantine: CFC took free-kick without the whistle & scored

The head coach also expressed his thoughts on how the season went for East Bengal.

It was a lacklustre performance from East Bengal that helped Chennaiyin FC get a league double over the Red & Golds. While Stephen Constantine's side created numerous chances in the first half, a lack of composure from their new striker Jake Jervis meant the side managed to get only one shot on target in the game. A lapse in concentration in the second half helped Chennaiyin to score two goals to get their first win in nine games.

After the game, East Bengal head coach Stephen Constantine talked about various aspects of the game and the season. Edited excerpts from the conference are as follows.

Coach's reaction to the game

The head coach expressed his evaluation of today's game. He lamented that Chennaiyin FC scored their first goal without the referee blowing his whistle. He argued that due to this, his team was not ready and Chennaiyin took advantage of it to score.

"We did not score the chances that we had. Then, within the first five minutes (of the second half), we concede a goal. The players standing around the ball were waiting for the referee to blow the whistle. They take the free kick without the whistle and they scored. My understanding says that there should have been a whistle before the play should have resumed. There should have been a whistle to signal the start of play."

The mentor added, "Then after that, we were chasing the game. When you do that, you are susceptible to a counter-attack, which is what happened for Chennaiyin's second goal."

On the possibility of the coach using reserve side players for the next games

On being asked whether reserve sides players will feature in any of the next two games, Stephen Constantine said that there is no chance of that happening. He argued that playing reserve side players against teams like Mumbai City and ATK Mohun Bagan would be a foolish act.

"We want results. We won't play our reserve side against Mumbai City or ATK Mohun Bagan. That's not possible. We will put the best 11 players that we have and try to get something from the last two games."

Coach's thoughts on how East Bengal's season panned out

The British coach admitted that East Bengal currently do not possess the quality needed to be among the top-six. He gave his reasons behind that.

"With the players that we have at the moment, we are not a top-six team. You can't wish it to happen if you don't have the players. We worked very hard and won five games, more than what we had won in the ISL previously. We were on a two-game unbeaten streak coming into this game. Considering everything, it is not the season that we had liked to have. Next season, we would be better prepared. Hopefully, we would be in the top-six next season."