Mario Rivera says SC East Bengal played better, created more chances

The Red and Gold registered their eighth loss of the season.

Tonight’s 2-1 defeat was perhaps the final nail in the coffin that is SC East Bengal’s abysmal season. Javi Hernandez and Jonathas de Jesus were enough to bully the Kolkata-based side’s defence, as Odisha FC emerged with the three points in the ISL. All Mario Rivera and his men can do now is to try and see the season through via some good performances.

Here’s what the head coach had to say about his team’s performance tonight:

Deserved to win

Just like previous matches, SC East Bengal came into the game and showed up after conceding the first goal. “I think we could have won the match.

"We played better than them and created more chances. We deserved to win but couldn’t, even if we tried till the end,” Mario Rivera said honestly.

Starting Sankar Roy

Skipper Arindam Bhattacharya was dropped from the starting XI and Saknar Roy was given the go-ahead for tonight’s match. “All the keepers are working very hard.

"Tonight Sankar played well and Arindam played well last game. We have a lot of players now and they all are ready to play,” the coach reassured.

Impressive work by full-backs

New signing Naocha Singh and Hira Mondal impressed their coach with their gritty and determined displays tonight. “Both of them did well tonight. They are young and still learning the ways. I am proud of them because they always want to do better,” a happy Rivera said.

Prospect of Fran Sota start

After having acquired the services of the Spaniard, Fran Sota is yet to start an ISL game. “We can only play four foreigners at a time.

"Fran came on in the second half to try and help the team come back. All the foreigners played really well tonight,” the coach lauded.

Plan for remaining games

After tonight’s loss, SCEB are officially out of contention for a top four finish. The media quizzed Rivera regarding the plan for the next few games.

“The plan is to always win. We can see that we are not happy with a draw, as we try to win the matches. So, that will be our plan,” the coach signed off.

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