NorthEast United FC boss lauds his team's performance against Mumbai City FC, highlights Brown-Coureur combination
After NorthEast United FC played out a thrilling 3-3 draw against table-toppers Mumbai City FC on Monday, head coach Khalid Jamil was all praise for the performance his players showcased against the defending champions.
In a six-goal thriller at the Fatorda Stadium, Deshorn Brown bagged a hattrick for NorthEast United FC to earn a point for the Highlanders. Speaking to the press after the game, Khalid Jamil said:
"Yes, [Deshorn] Brown was very good today. He came last year and helped us. And this time also coming after injury, he and Mathias [Coureur] combined very well. Along with Brown, Mathias also did a good job. And I should also mention Sehnaj [Singh] and Pragyan Sundar Gogoi. They did a good job today in the center of the field."
Deshorn Brown completed his hat-trick and got the equalizing goal for @NEUtdFC by getting the final touch on the ball to make it 3-3 tonight!
#NEUMCFC #HeroISL #LetsFootball https://t.co/mka2kEQXUO
While Deshorn Brown's hattrick will make the headlines, Imran Khan too chipped in with a pivotal performance in the middle of the park for NorthEast United FC. Sportskeeda asked Jamil what he made of Imran's performance and if he had been deployed in a more attacking role. The NorthEast United FC boss replied:
"Yeah, Imran [Khan] is working hard. We missed him at the start of the season but he has come back now. And today, we changed his role. We told him to play out wide, to supply Deshorn Brawn. In the first goal, he played that long ball to Brown. For the third goal, he tried to shoot and Brown scored from it. So looking at the overall performance, it was good."
However, on the dimmer side for NorthEast United FC, Khalid Jamil informed the press that star midfielder Khassa Camara has left the Highlanders' camp and will be joining the Mauritania National Team ahead of the African Cup of Nations. The news will come as a massive blow to the NorthEast United FC team, for whom Camara was the central piece of the puzzle in midfield.
View the today ISL match result here.
"It was disappointing tonight as we had some really good moments" - Mumbai City FC head coach after draw against NorthEast United FC
While Khalid Jamil was the happier of the two coaches after managing to take a point against the champions, Mumbai City FC head coach Des Buckingham picked out some positives too.
The Islanders were completely outplayed in their 3-0 loss against Kerala Blasters FC in the last game. Even tonight, they fell a goal behind in the 29th minute. Asked whether the players reacted well to the slump, Des Buckingham said:
"After the last game, I said they would not need to be motivated for the match against NorthEast United FC. Over the last week we have spent four or five sessions and this is the first time we have had that kind of time this season. We have worked on a few things that have been useful to us in this game and will be going forward. So the players have been really good to work with. It was disappointing tonight because we had some really good moments but now it's about consistency."
Igor Angulo & Goals - made for each other 🙌🤩
The Islander strikes his 7️⃣th goal of the season, to give the Islanders a two-goal cushion, before Deshorn Brown made it 3-2! 💥
#NEUMCFC #HeroISL #LetsFootball | @NEUtdFC @MumbaiCityFC https://t.co/hsAUXCuJ0y
Mumbai City FC showed great fight to come from behind and create a plethora of chances upfront against NorthEast United FC. But the Islanders have now conceded three goals in two back-to-back games. Responding to a Sportskeeda query on whether such defensive lapses are something that worries him in the long run, Des Buckingham said:
"The way we play is expansive. We try to create to width and that brings in risk sometimes. But we are willing to risk losing the ball if we our defensively set up when we have those moments. Tonight, there were a few moments when we should have made sure we were defensively organized even though we had the ball. So incase we lose it, there won't be easy chances for the opposition."