Subas Humagain, Kathmandu
After failing to put up a strong performance against hosts Nepal, head coach of the Indian National Football Team, Igor Stimac blamed soggy pitch condition.
The first of two match-friendly series between Nepal and India ended in a 1-1 draw at Dasharath Stadium on Thursday evening. Anjan Bista’s goal in the first half, Nepal could not maintain the lead, Nepal had to settle for a draw.
The Croat in the post-match conference said India deserved something more than a draw from the match. ‘We deserved better results than Nepal. Due to the condition of the field, we could not play as we expected. We managed to improve in the second half, ‘he said.
Coach Stimac said that the team’s performance should be divided into two parts. ‘We did poorly in the first half. Due to which we changed 4 players in the second half ‘, he said,’ Then our performance improved. The goal came out. I was not happy with the first half. I am happy with the second half. ‘
He also said that the Indian team deserves to win. ‘We are a much stronger team than Nepal and that was what we saw on the pitch. We conceded the goal due to our own mistake. Then the team performed well, ‘he said.
His counterpart Abdullah Almutairi, who had promised to perform proudly the day before, apologized to his supporters for failing to win. He praised the team’s performance and said the team will improve in the coming days.
‘I would like to apologize to the Nepali audience for the results we have drawn today’, Almutairi said,’ I apologize to the supporters. However, I am satisfied with the performance of the team. We will correct the mistakes in the coming days and play better. ‘
Almutairi said the goal was to give all the players in the team a chance in the two games against India. ‘I have changed the team as needed. Even today, towards the end, I gave an opportunity to the young players. The team is to move forward by giving an opportunity to all the players,’ he added.
