Kibu Vicuna pleased with first win, Nirmal Das keen to bounce back
Both head coaches were speaking following the opening clash of the Durand Cup 2019.
Mohun Bagan began their Durand Cup 2019 campaign on a high note, defeating cross-city rivals Mohammedan Sporting 2-0 in their first match at the Salt Lake Stadium on Friday. A brace from striker Salva Chamorro sealed the deal for the Mariners, handing Spanish coach Kibu Vicuna all three points in his first game.
The 47-year-old cut a pleased figure after the game and when asked about how he felt winning his first game at the Salt Lake Stadium he said, “I want to congratulate all the supporters who came to the stadium tonight. It was a fantastic atmosphere in the stadium. I think we started very well, the team enjoyed the ball.
Watch: Mohun Bagan 2-0 Mohammedan Sporting Club highlights
“It’s true that for us the match was a little bit important because it was the first match. I hope in the next games we’re going to get fitter physically. We know we have many things to improve and will talk in the dressing room, but we saw many positive things tonight.,” he added.
When asked whether having all four Spanish players together in his squad helps his style the tactician said, “Yes, of course, it helps because with our similar language, the style of play which we know well. But, Mohun Bagan is an Indian team and the most important players are the Indian players. The foreign players are just supporting them. It’s important that we talk the same language in the field and the ball is communicating between us.”
Despite the win, there were some aspects the Mariners can definitely improve upon going forward. When asked about what those aspects were he explained, “Everything we need to improve. Even the best teams in the world, they are not finished. We have to improve in every aspect of the game, be it technically, tactically and physically. We played well with the ball and most of the game we controlled the game.
With the ball, even in the second half, we played in a defensive position. We had the ball, but didn’t have to go to the opponents' goal to score. We conceded two chances to Mohammedan, which for me were both fouls. But, we took some risks which we didn’t need to take.,” he further reiterated.
Mohammedan’s assistant manager Nirmal Chandra Das arrived for the post-match conference, but shook away thoughts of his side’s disappointments. He said, “We received five shots on target. They got two shots and scored both of them. We received many open chances to score goals and I don’t think we really played that badly.”
[KH_RELATED_NEWS title="Related News"][/KH_RELATED_NEWS]Further explaining his feelings he stated, “Of course conceding so early was a turning point. But, I felt we played well and opened them up on many occasions.”
“This is our first match so problems can happen, obviously. It’s only by conceding the goals that the problems were created. Otherwise, there weren’t any issues.”
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