Phil Brown: I can't say we are good enough at the moment

The Englishman lashed out at opposition players for surrounding the referee.

Modou Sougou’s brace helped Mumbai City FC register their first win at home this season, as they defeated Hyderabad FC 2-1 at the Mumbai Football Arena. Hyderabad reduced the deficit within three minutes of Sougou’s second goal, but failed to find the equalizer. The losing team's head coach Phil Brown interacted with the media in the post-match press conference. Hyderabad were a goal down at half-time and the Englishman was seen making some changes in personnel very early in the second half. He went on to share his thoughts on the substitutions that were made. [KH_ADWORDS type="3" align="center"][/KH_ADWORDS] “I thought making substitutions at times, in a game of football, adds to the tactical awareness of the game. They have a lot to do with the weaknesses of the opposition. I think we exploited the weaknesses of the opposition on numerous occasions." "We did enough to win this game two or three times over, without any fear of contradiction. If Jorge Costa was sitting here with me at the same table, I’d say exactly the same thing. He’s a tactician, there’s no doubt about it. His team’s play in a manner that gets him over the winning line and that is something we need to learn to do." Phil Brown made a statement in the hopes of gaining the club officials' trust. He said, “If the owners stay with me, I will reward them by making changes in the January transfer window that will instil a little bit of pride back in the club. We’re bottom of the league. It hurts me every time I see the league table, every time I talk to somebody who wants to talk to me about the pride of managing Hyderabad FC and I can’t talk to them with any pride because we are bottom of the league." Phil Brown went on to express his thoughts on his side's performance saying, "I can’t say we’re good enough at the moment. You’ve got to look at the league table and face facts, face reality. If it’s the head coach, change the head coach, if it’s the players, change the players. But, if the ownership stays with the head coach, I will make sure we will do something about it in the second half of the season." [KH_ADWORDS type="4" align="center"][/KH_ADWORDS] On Refereeing “My thoughts are quite simple where refereeing is concerned. They need to get it right, they need to improve. They’re not bossing the game, they’re not in-charge of the game. Players surround the referees on too many occasions, which puts the man in the middle under that much pressure. I would issue yellow cards to the first three or four that come near me." "I’m trying to stop my players from doing it. I’m trying to actually say to my players, give the man some respect. I don’t think anybody in Indian football at this moment in time is showing referees enough respect. They’re under immense pressure and they make mistakes." On Stoppages In Play “I’m not calling Jorge Costa a cheater. Player goes down on the right-hand side of the field of play and leaves from the left-hand side of the field of play. The referee spotted it straight away and didn’t do anything about it. The next one gets substituted on the left-hand side of the pitch and leaves on halfway on the right-hand side of the pitch. That for me is cheating. The only way to deal with cheats is to fight fire with fire. We’re going to keep the ball next time it goes out regardless of who kicks it out." [KH_RELATED_NEWS title="Related News | Article Continues Below"][/KH_RELATED_NEWS] The Hyderabad coach also addressed the effect of stoppages on the spectators. He said, “It’s the only game in the world that is less than a half in play, that is less than 45 minutes in play. Now, that’s not a spectacle. If we are going to fill stadiums we’ve got to make it a spectacle." "In the Premier League in England, it’s more than two-thirds. When you’re watching a game of football, you’ve got to see a minimum of 60 minutes of play. It’s less than 45 minutes in India every game. That is wrong, that is cheating and it needs to be addressed," concluded Phil Brown.