While Abahani coach Amalesh Sen was savouring the victory over arch rivals Mohammedan, his counterpart Jewel Rana was ruing the simple mistakes that led to his side’s loss at the Bangabandhu National Stadium yesterday.
Amalesh termed the victory a morale boosting one. “Any win against in a big match is good and Mohammedan boosts the morale and now we are boosted with new confidence. I admit we were a little shaky but after scoring the first goal, the confidence grew and we did not look back,” he said.
Amalesh admitted that it was good to see the team emerge as the group champions and avoid Sheikh Jamal in the quarter-finals. “It is normal to expect weaker opposition in the knock out phase. We thought about the option before taking the field, we were a little bit worried with the defence but at last it coped with the pressure well. I think Abahani came out as the deserved victors,” said Amalesh.
Amalaesh said his foreign players rose to the occasion. “Overall it was a team effort, my foreign players were better than the opponents’. They had an impact and we kept Emily and Zahid under close marking so that they failed to deliver the goods.”
Jewel Rana, who filled Saiful Bari Titu’s position, thought his team failed to rectify simple mistakes and his foreigners were not up to the mark. “The first goal was conceded as the Brazilian was unmarked and headed home easily. Moreover we had the chances but could not convert them. In the big matches, the chances are not often obtained and we wasted the chances that fell our way, how can a team win if they can’t score goals? Now we have beat a strong team to survive,” said Jewel.
Jewel pointed out that his foreigners and match winners fell short of expectations. “The foreign players did not rise to the occasion and the match winners we have also were below par. We conceded the goal after ten minutes, there was time to bounce back but we failed to do so,” he said.
Abahani’s Brazilian midfielder Luiz de Castro expressed happiness over scoring a goal after five months. “I played my last competitive match about five months ago and after playing two matches, I feel I am regaining my form. I am happy to score the first goal for Abahani,” said the Brazilian.
Vincent Hemanta Biswas, the U-19 captain who played the first derby of his career, hoped to improve. “It’s like a dream come true. I am unhappy to see that we lost but we will try to improve in our next matches,” he said.