ISL 7: We are playing against 12 men in every single game, says Fowler

VASOC: SC East Bengal head coach Robbie Fowler feels that his side is playing against 12 men in every game in the ongoing Indian Super League season 7 as they are struggling with injuries.

SC East Bengal earned their first point of the season after playing out a goalless draw against Jamshedpur FC at the Tilak Maidan Stadium on Thursday.

“We changed because we have injuries. There were players who were not fit enough to play the last time. We are always trying to use all the players at our disposal. We never had a pre-season, we are massively behind everyone in terms of being ready. It has been tough for our players. We feel we are playing against 12 men in every single game. It worked well for us and we defended really well,” Fowler said in the post-match press conference.

“It was just to regroup. I don’t think any decision was going our way. Everyone does seem to be against us. We just had to go out there and defend like the way we can and don’t concede and it was important for us to get the point. On the back of three losses, it was a huge point for us,” he added.

East Bengal presented their opponents with a good fight as they tried to grab the lead but the task got tougher when they were down to 10 men. Eugeneson Lyngdoh received his marching orders from the referee for a second yellow, following a rash tackle on Alexandre Lima.

Jamshedpur capitalised on the sending off and continued to pile pressure on Fowler’s side but failed to convert their chances. Just before the half-hour mark, Valskis came close to breaking the deadlock. Laldinliana Renthlei whipped a cross from the right which was met by Valskis on the volley but the ball narrowly missed the far post by inches.

“We just had a great point playing against 12 men with 10 for 70 minutes. We are a good side and we have proved that in past weeks, we have created chances and tonight was just odd. We had a man sent off today and the game plan went out of the window. It was just a case of luck,” Fowler said.

Jamshedpur continued to dominate proceedings after the break, pinning East Bengal to their own half. They were nearly awarded for their persistence in the 69th minute only to be denied by the woodwork, again.

Both sides played cautiously in the dying minutes in hopes of not conceding a goal. There was drama late in the game as Renthlei was shown a second yellow card during stoppage time, leaving both sides with 10 men. In the end, both sides settled for a draw. (ANI)