Portugal rues lack of efficiency in front of goal, Coppell pleased with 'deserved' win

The visitors kept a fourth straight clean sheet while the hosts failed to score for a second home game running.

Wednesday ended on a disappointing note for Delhi Dynamos as they suffered a 1-0 defeat at the hands of Indian Super League debutants Jamshedpur FC at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Delhi. This was their third loss in a row, with the team conceding the maximum number of goals (9) till date, this season.

In the post-match press conference, Delhi head coach Miguel Angel Portugal admitted that their opponents were better which led to their victory. In the entirety of the match, Delhi just managed to initiate two shots on target laying bare their attacking shortcomings. Speaking on this, Portugal said, “We couldn’t score goals because of the opponent. I try playing football, I try motivating my players. But it is difficult for us to finish our chances in the box. I like attacking football, but my team has not been attacking well in the last three matches. We had more possession but no efficiency.”

He further added, “We need quality to finish. Now we don’t have that quality in our team. In the last match, we had seven attempts on goal but we didn’t score, but today I did not like the way my team played.”

Delhi have been missing the services of both midfielder Matias Mirabaje and defender Sena Ralte due to injuries. The Spaniard also took off the talented youngster, Lallianzuala Chhangte after Jamshedpur’s goal which raised eyebrows as he had been in good form. But Portugal believes, “He is a younger player. In the first match, he played very well.  After that, all the newspapers were saying that he’s a very big player. But he is very young and I feel that all this (publicity) is a little bad for him.”

Portugal concluded by pointing out which aspect was keeping his team from scoring and winning matches, “I think the team is very nervous in scoring situations. The squad is not right and the players are nervous. That is the main problem. I don’t know why because with the ball we play well. In football, the nervousness is because of the score. If we win, the nervousness goes out. It is very important that we win for that.”

Bikey misses from the spot but Azuka header hands Jamshedpur maiden win

Exclusive: 'Diva' Berbatov adds to Kerala Blasters' woes

Chennaiyin FC host ATK in meeting of two teams at opposite end of confidence scale

Jamshedpur FC scored their first goal and registered their first win of the ISL) after beating Delhi Dynamos 0-1 in Delhi on Wednesday. Izu Azuka scored the only goal of the contest in the 61st minute after Andre Bikey had missed a golden opportunity to put Jamshedpur ahead from the penalty spot.

Speaking to the media at the post-match press conference, Jamshedpur head coach Steve Coppell insisted that his were deserved winners on the night. “Well like I’ve been saying, we have been close three times. I thought we played well tonight. We had some good opportunities, we didn’t give much away. It was very pleasing, so I think the victory was deserved,” he said.

The score was 0-0 at the break with neither side managing to create too many clear-cut chances. Coppell, however, revealed that there wasn’t any change in terms of approach from his side after the restart. “We felt that if we kept on doing the right things, we would get some kind of return, so we did not up the tempo or anything. We like to think that we put the opponents under pressure,” Coppell said. 

Sameehg Doutie didn’t start for Jamshedpur on the wings and Coppell admitted that fitness issues with the South-African as well as the need to freshen up his starting line-up had influenced his decision. “He’s (Doutie) had a few fitness issues. It was just a choice for the game. I have got a squad of 20 odd players; I’m pleased with the squad. They look after each other. I have got interchangeable players. I had (Bikash) Jairu on the left wing and he’s an international player, so it wasn’t as if we were making some detrimental changes. I like to think that we have got a squad which is reasonably balanced so it’s just an opportunity for fresh faces to come in,” the 62-year-old said.

When asked how different the current Delhi side is compared to that of last season, Coppell added: “It’s a very different side. I really enjoy watching this Delhi side play. I saw the game against FC Pune City and I thought that they were fabulous. I think there are positive and seeing players like Vinit (Rai) play in that kind of environment, pleases me. It’s a good way of playing football.  This might sound strange but results aren’t everything in football. Over the course of the season, it’s all about playing well.”

[KH_RELATED_NEWS title="Related News"][/KH_RELATED_NEWS]

Goal-scorer Azuka also accompanied Coppell to the conference. Commenting on his first impression of the Hero ISL, the Nigerian added: “I don’t think there is any difference in the leagues I’ve played in before (Turkey, Cyprus, Tunisia) and the ISL. They are practically in the same league.”