Bengaluru FC succumbed to its four consecutive defeat. It suffered a narrow 0-1 loss to giant, SC East Bengal, during the Indian Super League (ISL) 2020-21, at the Fatorda Stadium, in Bengaluru, on Saturday.
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It was all due to Matti Steinmann's 19th-minute strike that handed them the lead, while SCEB goalkeeper, Debjit Majumder pulled off some saves to deny Bengaluru a comeback. With this win, SCEB has risen to the ninth spot, while Bengaluru stays at sixth.
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While this was Bengaluru manager, Naushad Moosa's first game in charge, he was relatively satisfied with the performance and confident that his boys would bounce back in the upcoming games. "It was an unlucky goal to concede but the way we played, I am sure we will bounce back. If you see, even SCEB was also not up to the mark initially and they have improved since their last match. I'm sure we will come back. I am confident that we will win the next match or at least give a positive performance," he said.
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"You won't believe me, but I've had three sleepless nights. It's not been easy for me. It was all of a sudden and we knew what kind of a relationship we shared with Carles. The kind of relationship the whole team shared, not only the coaching staff. It was not easy for us. I had to really sit with everyone and talk to them individually and they were all really charged up and made me feel comfortable. They really showed that they are professionals and are here to play football," he added.
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On being asked if he would stick with the youngsters, Moosa sounded optimistic. "I want to rely more on the youth now. The way they are playing - Parag played his first game and was doing well and it was unlucky that he got injured. Then Bhutia and Amay also came on..they were nervous, but that's fine. Going ahead, this is what they need - an opportunity. We have ten more games to come; it's still not over for us. There are a lot of positives to take from today's match," he reckoned.
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Meanwhile, Bengaluru's defensive midfielder, Erik Paartalu, considered, "It's been a difficult run for us, but I thought tonight was a better performance from BFC. It's been a difficult week, but we put up a better performance tonight. We, at BFC, take it personally when a coach loses their job, particularly myself and the other players, and we need to take responsibility for that and need to go on the pitch, and put up performances, and get the results."
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SCEB's Majumder, who came up with as many as six saves in the game, figured, "It was a big win for us and a very motivating one. We worked very hard for this win and it will motivate us to do better. I give my 200 per cent in every game and practice session, and try to give it my all on the pitch."
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SCEB's new signing, Bright Enobakhare revealed that he is enjoying his current role at the club. "I think we did what we needed to win the three points. Basically, the coach tells me to enjoy myself and that's what I want. It's a free role for me and he tells me to play anywhere I want," he concluded.
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