Khalid Jamil rues early misses, hails defensive display

by Kaushal Shukla January 18, 2016

Mumbai FC had to settle for a 0-0 draw against Kingfisher East Bengal in their first home encounter in the 2016 Hero I-League on Sunday evening. The game saw Mumbai get on top early on in the game, before the visitors enjoyed an excellent spell at the start of the second half. Bu tin the end, neither team could make the most of their moments in the game as the spoils were shared.

Mumbai FC Head Coach Khalid Jamil was left to rue some early chances which went begging for the home side as he expressed his disappointment at the result. “I am not happy with the result as we were looking for three points from this game. However, I feel the performance of our players was good. The only thing lacking was the finish. We had some good chances in the first 25-30 minutes and we didn’t hit the target from those,” Khalid Jamil told the media after the game.

The Mumbai FC gaffer was otherwise pleased with the defensive display of the team and heaped praise on Mumbai FC’s center back pairing of Min Chol Son and Pratik Chaudhary. “I felt Son was excellent in the second half, he didn’t give Ranti any opening in the game and communicated well with youngsters like Pratik and Clyde in defense. Pratik saved a certain goal with his tackle and I felt he had a very good game for us. I am happy with their performances,” expressed Jamil.

Khalid Jamil also confirmed that Japanese striker Ryuki Kozawa would be available for the next game against Salgaocar at Cooperage on 24^th January 2016. Jamil felt Kozawa would add a bit more bite to their attack with his movement and skill, but urged his attackers to provide a bit more support to the forward. “Kozawa would be available for the next game. He would give us a bit extra going forward. But at the same time we must do more to support the striker. Today I felt Sushil didn’t get the support he needed from midfield and we need to improve on that aspect,” Jamil added.

The game saw an attendance of 3,870 which was the second highest since Mumbai FC returned to Cooperage and Khalid Jamil paid tribute to the fans by crediting their enthusiasm as a reason for Mumbai FC’s quick start to the game. “I think the fans were quite splendid. They were loud and clear right from the start and I believe it played a part during the first thirty minutes of the game which we dominated,” said Jamil as he concluded his post match thoughts.