Kibu Vicuna: We didn't participate much in the final third

The Spaniard expressed his disappointment with the result of the game.

It was not a great start for Kerala Blasters, as they succumbed to a 0-1 defeat against ATK Mohun Bagan in the Indian Super League curtain-raiser. Fijian marksman Roy Krishna was the difference between the two sides. Meanwhile, Kibu Vicuna who made his debut as the Blasters' head coach seemed disappointed after losing a close game.

However, he assured that his players did not lack in terms of their preparations for the big clash. "We prepared for this game in the best way possible. I think the plan for the game was clear. We are happy with the performance of the team, unfortunately, we lost. We were a bit unlucky with the way we conceded the goal. We had our chances to score but did not convert. So, we now have to look forward to the next game," said Vicuna at the post-match press conference.

The Yellow Army had a whopping 68% possession, something which Vicuna's style of play demands. But, they still failed to find the end product on the night and the Spaniard feels his team will have to play much better in the final third. "We have to play better in the final third, we controlled the middle quite well. In the last third, we did not participate too much. Moreover, we did not involve our wingers, offensive midfielders and strikers that much, so we will try to improve in this aspect of the game," he added.

The former Mohun Bagan tactician shocked everyone when he selected Prasanth Karuthadathkuni as his right-back ahead of Nishu Kumar, who was roped in this season from Bengaluru FC for big bucks. However, Vicuna revealed that he feels the Keralite can flourish as a right-back in the coming days. Speaking about Nishu's exclusion from the squad, Vicuna said, "We start every game with 11 players and Prasanth can play on any given day. Also, even today he had a good performance and he can play as a right-back. That's why we are using him in this position."

"Nishu is also a very important player for us, but he had some problems during pre-season. So, we are waiting for him to be 100% and he is for sure going to be a very important player for us," concluded Kibu Vicuna.