"You don't just win with eleven players"- Odisha FC head coach lauds his team's performance against Kerala Blasters FC | ISL 2022-23
Hosts Odisha FC outplayed Kerala Blasters FC in the final game of Matchweek 3 of the Indian Super League (ISL) 2022-23 season. The two sides squared off at Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneshwar on Sunday, October 23, for this encounter.
The Kalinga Warriors came up with a plan and, despite conceding first, managed to churn out a result in their favor in the second half.
Head coach Josep Gombau shared his views on his team's performance in the post-match press conference. Reflecting on the substitution that impacted the result against the Yellow Tuskers, the Spaniard said:
"You don't just win with eleven players. We have 25 players in our squad and to win the game we are using one player or another. Today, the player who came on in the second half made a good impact. This is the spirit of the team."
The Odisha FC head coach was delighted to secure an important victory against a tough side like Kerala Blasters FC. On this note, he said:
"We are so happy. This is our home game at the Kalinga Stadium. We managed to get a good result, which is difficult in this league because all the teams are quite good. Kerala Blasters are a very good side and we are happy to have won against them."
Blasters took the lead in the 35th minute via Harmanjot Singh Khabra but Odisha FC scored two goals in the second half. Jerry Mawihmingthanga and Pedro Martin scored in the 54th and 86th minutes, respectively, to bag all three points for the hosts.
"We will go game by game" - Odisha FC head coach on his plans to approach future matches
Josep Gombau iterated that he has not set up his team to play in a particular way but adapt to the style of the opponent. Shedding light on this, the Odisha FC gaffer said:
"We will go game by game. We played against very strong opponents at the very beginning of the season. But watching all the teams has made me realize that there isn't a big difference between them. Every team can beat the other team in the league."
The Spaniard expects a tough fight from his next opponent, Bengaluru FC, on October 27, who knocked his side out in the Durand Cup. He expects them to take note of the errors made in the team's previous outing with the Blues in pursuit of improving their approach.