Chennai (Tamil Nadu) [India], October 8 : Chennaiyin FC head coach Owen Coyle expressed his disappointment with his team's performance in their recent Indian Super League (ISL) match against Mohun Bagan Super Giant. The team suffered a challenging 1-3 defeat at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Chennai on Sunday in their first home game of the season.
Mohun Bagan SG took the lead through Dimitri Petratos, with Jason Cummings adding another goal for the Mariners just before halftime. Chennaiyin FC managed to score their first goal of the season, courtesy of Rafael Crivellaro's free-kick, but Mohun Bagan SG extended their lead with a goal from Manvir Singh. This result meant that Chennaiyin FC remained without a point in the season after three games.
Coyle lamented his team's missed opportunities, which he believes have been a recurring issue throughout the season. The team had previously suffered defeats against Odisha FC and NorthEast United FC, struggling to find the back of the net in those matches.
"We had two best chances at 0-0 to get in front and we didn't take them. And that's probably been the story of our three games. We had wonderful chances at Odisha and NorthEast to get in front, so we need to be clinical in front of goal," Coyle said in the post-match press conference as per the ISL website.
Coyle acknowledged that there were a couple of individual errors that contributed to their loss, including conceding a goal just 40 seconds after scoring. The Chennaiyin FC head coach said that it's crucial for the team to address these issues and improve their performance over the course of the season.
While Coyle acknowledged the challenging start to the season, he remained optimistic about the team's potential. He reminded everyone that there are still 22 games left in the season and that they are working hard to improve.
"We made a couple of individual errors. And then we got back to 2-1 and then we saw Chennaiyin FC in the second half, and within 40 seconds of scoring, we actually gifted them a goal. It was a throw-in and the Mohun Bagan (Super Giant) players went on and scored. It's not the start we wanted... But it's about 22 games in the season and not three games. We'd like to have won points and we could have. There were a lot of positive things in different periods in the game," he said.
Coyle previously took charge of Chennaiyin FC midway through the 2019-20 season and led the team from the bottom half of the standings to the ISL Cup final. He stressed the need for his players to eliminate individual errors and make the most of their scoring opportunities to turn their form around.
"We have to cut out individual mistakes and look to pick up. This result was going to be a big, big job. I've not come in here and inherited a team of champions. I've come in here and inherited a team that has just been once in the playoffs for one season and that was the season when they were at the bottom and I came in and we changed that. And that's what we're doing. We're working hard, it's a young group, and they will get better and we showed tonight against a very good side. We scored one goal and could have easily had three in the game. We'll continue to take the punches, in the nose. It's not a nice feeling. But that's football," Coyle concluded.
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