There were a number of clear opportunities to win the game: Kino Garcia

OFC Head Coach Kino Garcia was pleased with his team’s performance but bemoaned their wasted opportunities to score a second goal.

Odisha FC, already eliminated from the semi-finals, drew 1-1 with ATK Mohun Bagan at the Tilak Maidan Stadium in Vasco, Goa. With one game remaining in the season, these results kept OFC eighth on the Hero Indian Super League (ISL) table.

Kino Garcia addressed the media after the game.

Here are some excerpts from his press conference:

You got a hard-earned point, but your semi-finals dream is over. What are your thoughts on it?

We knew that but here we are professional and want to compete in every match. We want Odisha FC to have a good season, we also try to make the fans proud. I think today we had a hard game against ATK Mohun Bagan but honestly, we had many clear chances to win the game.

Do you think you were unlucky today?

I think we had many chances. We had a plan against ATK Mohun Bagan, we knew how to close the spaces and I think that we didn’t suffer a lot against one of the best teams in the Hero ISL. We had really good chances, with Aridai and also the penalty so, I think that we had really clear chances during the game and I’m really proud of the performance of my players and how they gave everything today on the pitch.

Both your games against ATK Mohun Bagan have been draws this season. What have you found out against them?

We prepare every match the same, with the same interest and with the same work. We try to work with better ideas and better plans sometimes, they work, and sometimes they don’t. I think that today the plan worked. If you remember against Chennaiyin FC, we have also had bad luck in having many chances and then receiving the draw and against FC Goa the same, so I think that football owes one to us because I think that the team deserves to be higher in the league. Thinking in some matches that we did not get the three points because of small details and against ATK Mohun Bagan, we knew the power that they have but we knew how to close the spaces. But as you know sometimes it works sometimes it doesn’t. I think that today the team was good.

Your next game is in 10 days. What is the plan for that?

The plan is to enjoy the last game and ensure that the players enjoy it. Today, I’m really happy for Sebastian Thangmuansan, he didn’t play much during the season, and he did a wonderful job. So sometimes, the player is working hard, and you give them a chance and I think that he deserved to be one of the better players of the game. We will try to prepare against Jamshedpur FC, put them in difficulties, try to make the best match possible against them, and enjoy our last day in Goa.