Jamshedpur boss Owen Coyle delighted with growth of young Indian players

Monday night's victory helped the Men of Steel to climb to the second spot in the league standings.

Jamshedpur FC climbed to the second spot in the Indian Super League standings after beating ATK Mohun Bagan 2-1 on Monday. Goals from Seiminlen Doungel and Alex Lima on either side of the break helped Owen Coyle's side extend their unbeaten run to four games. Pritam Kotal scored a late consolation for the Mariners, who have now lost two on the trot from the first time in the ISL.

Lima's goal, which sealed the win for Jamshedpur, was his first goal in the league in two seasons. Coyle was delighted with the Brazilian's impact after coming off the bench. He also praised Seiminlen Doungel for his goal and the other domestic players for delivering when called upon.

Following the game, Jamshedpur FC head coach Owen Coyle spoke in the post-match press conference.

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Indian players outperforming foreign recruits

The tactician began by emphasizing the importance of young Indian players in his team. Despite the presence of an impressive foreign contingent, the Indian players delivered consistently whenever called upon.

"As you know, I'm prepared to give them chances. Young Komal and Boris — both singed from ATK Mohun Bagan, are getting opportunities to play. Jitu (Jitendra Singh) is getting better by the day, you've seen his performance tonight. Pronay did well against the team he is on loan from," Owen Coyle reflected.

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"So yeah, it's great, I think it's about getting the team balance. Delighted about the growth and how they keep getting better and hope there is plenty to come from them," he added.

Alex Lima's substitution

Since he joined Jamshedpur FC last summer, Alex Lima has been the go-to man in Jamshedpur's midfield. However, although he has controlled the middle of the park, Lima was yet to score and assist a goal until Monday. The Brazilian broke the duck with a wonderful finish to clinch all three points for his side. It came only seconds after he had come on and it made Coyle delighted.

"Alex steps into the game with a wonderful strike in the bottom corner. It's always nice when you bring a sub and he does that (score). He couldn't start due to four foreign rule. Hopefully, we get the balance of foreign players and Indian players," the tactician stated.

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Seiminlen Doungel injury update

Seiminlen Doungel scored the opener for Jamshedpur FC with his 10th goal in the ISL. Talking about him and his injury, Coyle said it didn't look great at the start. However, he is yet to speak to the medical team to determine the length of the forward's absence.

"It (injury) doesn't look great and it stopped the flow of the game as Len has been playing in engaging positions. He was wonderful and got a goal and he gave ATKMB a lot of problems," Coyle opined.

"Let's hope he's not out for too long because he is an important player. I brought him last year in January and he's been in terrific form, we obviously have Farukh already missing, which is a huge blow," he added.

Unbeaten run

Owen Coyle felt that Jamshedpur FC deserve the unbeaten run as the players have worked hard to be defensively sound. He also revealed that the top two position doesn't matter for his side at this stage of the league.

"It will only be proper after 20 games," Coyle asserted before adding that the Men of Steel will continue to take one game at a time.

Jamshedpur FC face defending champions and table-toppers Mumbi City FC in their next match on Thursday.

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