Atletico de Kolkata lost their first away game this season 2-1 against FC Pune City as the Stallions built on their good their good record against Kolkata in the Indian Super League. Iain Hume scored from the penalty spot for the visitors but it was a little too late to inspire a comeback as goals from Eduardo Ferreira and Anibal Zurdo proved to be a mountain too steep to climb for the visitors.
Kolkata coach Jose Molina was, however, happy with his team's grit as he talked about the game and much more in his post-match press conference.
When asked about what went wrong in the game which was expected to be an easy win for the visitors as Pune had been languishing in the bottom during the first phase of ISL. Molina replied, “We did a good job to stay in the game till the final whistle and the players really did give their all. We were dominating for the first 40 minutes as Pune scored from their only chance in the first half.”
Molina also accepted the fact that ATK lost confidence after conceding the first goal and FC Pune City took complete advantage of it. Kolkata played a 4-4-1-1 formation with Hume playing just behind marquee signing Helder Postiga with Molina opting to bench Javi Lara. On the system opted by Molina, he said, “For me, this is the best system that we can play in and I have no doubt that this is the system that I will use in the future.”
Pune played a physical and an aggressive game yesterday which made Molina complain as he said, “Yes they were aggressive. It was their way to stop us but we didn't stop in our aim to play football. If the referee would have given more yellow cards then Pune would have stopped being physical. We just have to do our job as we cannot do anything concerning the referee's decisions.”
The former Villarreal manager also congratulated Pune City on their first home win which propelled them from the last spot to the sixth above FC Goa and Kerala Blasters. ATK remain in the third position as Molina remains hopeful of his team's chances this season. “The team is playing really well as we will try to continue to play in our own way. A loss is just another aspect of the game. We accept it and we move on. My aim is just to win our next game and then we will see further down the road,” he said.
More Indian Football news, transfer rumours, analysis and features at Sportskeeda.com
