As East Bengal registered their first win of the ongoing Indian Super League (ISL) season 7, coach Robbie Fowler on Sunday said that winning the match will always be more important than maintaining a clean sheet.
SC East Bengal kick-started the new year on a bright note as they defeated Odisha FC 3-1 to bag their first win in the Indian Super League here at the GMC Stadium on Sunday. First-half goals from Anthony Pilkington (12') and Jacques Maghoma (39') put SCEB ahead before substitute Bright Enobakhare (88'), making his ISL debut, joined the party late on.
Odisha FC's Diego Mauricio (90') scored the 100th goal of the ISL season but it proved to be a consolation as Odisha saw their winless run continue.
"We have a way of playing, we like to keep it simple, it's not about the formation or certain players, everyone has a certain role, if you move a player ten yards, the formation completely changes, we have a way of playing, we want to get our players comfortable on the ball," said Fowler during the post-match press conference.
"You always want to keep a clean sheet, I think the most important thing is that we got the three points and we won the game. We deserved a win, clean sheets are great but three points are more important," he added.
There was drama late on in the contest with two goals in the final few minutes. Enobakhare put the game to bed with his second attempt after being denied the first time by Arshdeep. Two minutes later, Odisha found the net, but in the end, it proved to be too little too late.
"Yeah, it is always nice to get a win, it was a good professional performance, we are building, we know there's a lot of work that needs to be done as a team, great start for us in the New Year," said Fowler.
"It is unbelievable to get a win, I have said it all along, if we keep playing well and keep progressing, the win will come, we have been playing okay, we have made few changes and we have got the win eventually," he added.
East Bengal is currently at the 10th position in the ISL points table with six points from eight matches. The side will next take on FC Goa on Wednesday.
( With inputs from ANI )
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