Owen Coyle: We should have had better game-management

The Scotsman insisted that his side could have held on to a win despite going a man down.

It was another tough day at the office for Jamshedpur FC, as they shared the spoils with Odisha FC in a 2-2 stalemate. The Men of Steel were in a commanding position at the break, leading by a Nerijus Valskis brace. However, late drama and TP Rehenesh's marching orders changed the entire complexion of the match, as substitute Diego Mauricio replied with a second double of his own. Owen Coyle was disappointed with his team's efforts, as they only secured a point from the fixture.

According to the Scotsman, the red card was the turning point and also his players lacked proper game-management to see out a 2-0 lead. "We were brilliant in the first half, as we dictated the game and were 2-0 up. It could have been three or four, we totally controlled the game. We stressed at half-time that we need to continue to pass the ball sharply. I think our passing wasn't that good. Credit to Odisha, they had nothing to lose from that situation and we should have had better game-management. That being said, everything hinges on the sending off. It was a huge turning point in the game and was it outside the box? Was it a red card? I think a yellow would have sufficed. So, that was hard to take."

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"But, even with 10 men and 2-0 up, we should be in a position to see the game. I think with our first-half performance, we stand toe-to-toe with the best teams in the league. So, that's where we need to focus on," Coyle said at the post-match press conference. 

Speaking about the challenge of defending when Odisha were piling men forward in search of goals, he added, "It is very challenging when you are a man down and they are throwing everybody forward. But still, we've got to have a cool head and retain possession, keep passing and moving the ball. We also brought a couple of substitutes into the game, who were ready to come on and play that part and see the game out. The first one was a very scrappy goal, but we did not clear our lines and got punished. The last one was an unbelievable wonder strike."

"It happens, but we have to be better by not giving the first goal away and applying pressure. I think game-management is a big thing and it is early in the season, but it feels like two points dropped. That being said, we will pick ourselves up and we go again in two days' time against a good Hyderabad side."

Lastly, Owen Coyle opened up on how he saw the red card situation involving Rehenesh and felt that it can happen to any player on any given day.  "I think it was unfortunate, it was Ricky (Lallawmawma) who missed the ball with his studs and  it came bouncing to Rehenesh and it could have bounced anywhere. The bad luck was more with the ball bouncing to his hand than anywhere else. These things happen regardless of whether you're an experienced or young player. I think Rehenesh was terrific in the game with an outstanding save against (Manuel) Onwu earlier, it was a wonderful volley. So, we won't be too harsh on him. Ultimately, we knew that we will be punished going down to 10 men, but even then we were in a position to win the game. So, we have to do better. It is not about individuals doing mistakes, but all of us coming together," the Scotsman concluded.