Roca urges balance in defeat and victory, Coppell delighted as tactics pay off

The visitors snatched all three points in the 'Battle of Steel.'

A late penalty dictated proceedings at the Sree Kanteerava Stadium, as the home team Bengaluru FC succumbed to their second consecutive defeat in Indian Super League (ISL) 2017-18 against Jamshedpur FC on Thursday. Rahul Bheke’s mistake inside the penalty box cost the Blues a penalty in the 90th minute which Trindade Goncalves converted with absolute ease, to edge past with a 1-0 win. Even though the Blues had more shots on target compared to the visitors, they failed to breach Subrata Paul and Jamshedpur’s solid defence.

Present at the post-match press conference was the home team’s head coach Albert Roca, who visibly looked disappointed with the turn of events. Speaking of the loss, he said, “You have to try everything. It is a shame it is like this (losing matches in the dying minutes). We have to learn about that. We are not so good but we’re not so bad. It’s a shame after winning two good away games, we have to come here (at home) and lose two games at the last minute. Hard luck! It’s for us to learn and for me first.”

“I think we did not deserve to win, but we didn’t deserve to lose either. We found a team who don’t give you a lot of spaces. In the second half, we created some chances to score, but it was not possible. It was my decision to risk a little more. I knew it could lead to some counters. It was not our day to produce enough to win, but it’s good to see when it happens,” he further added.

On being asked how he would encourage his team to bounce back in their next fixture when they face Kerala Blasters, after back-to-back losses, the Spaniard said, “We must be clever and work hard for the next game. We for sure are a little bit down. But tomorrow, it’s another day and we look forward to getting the three points. This is football. We’re not dead. It’s hard to lose games at the last minute but it’s for us to learn about that. Stay ahead and try to do things better,” he concluded.

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Speaking to the media during the post-match press conference after a 1-0 win was their head coach Steve Coppell.

He began by expressing his joy and highlighting the factors that helped his team secure a win. “To come here and win the game, obviously we are very happy with that,” he gushed. “We tried to play contrary to their strengths, and we worked very hard on that. I think we did okay. They had some opportunities in the second half, but we looked a bit more threatening. I’m happy with the three points.”

The Englishman admitted that although Bengaluru had the better chances, it all came down to converting the opportunities, where Jamshedpur triumphed. “I would say the game is based on fine margins,” he said. “They did have better chances though they have to be converted. You can say for a certain period we rode our luck. All in all, we had a good chance on the other end with Jerry (Mawhmingthanga), and then we got the penalty. We played full part in the game. It was always going to be a close match. So, I’m delighted that we got the edge.”

Coppell also provided an update on why Mehtab Hossain was substituted in the first half. “We do a lot of travelling,” he stated. “He has had bad back for three days now. And it was obvious from the first 15 minutes that he wasn’t moving properly. So we had to make that change. We lost a little bit in one way, but we gained in another.”

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Jamshedpur FC have now kept five clean sheets in the campaign so far, and before concluding, Coppell lauded his team as a whole for that achievement. “I don’t think you can credit one person, one thing,” he said. “I think it’s the constant attention to detail. We have a good spirit, we have to help each other along. Team spirit, attention to detail and commitment.”