Atletico de Kolkata (ATK) chief coach Spaniard Antonio Lopez Habas said his side is under immense pressure to reach the Indian Super League (ISL) semifinals.
The former Valencia (Spanish football club) coach however praised his wards’ commitment and the desire to win and was also happy with the team’s performance against the Delhi Dynamos which ended in a goalless draw at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in New Delhi.
“We created a few chances to score but we didn’t. I feel that we’re under pressure, I can feel it around the team; we want to reach the semifinals and soon as possible and for that we’re under pressure,” Habas was quoted as saying by >indiansuperleague.com.
“I’m very happy with the team’s performance. They were committed, they sacrificed and they tried to win. We could see from the bench that two penalty decisions by the referee for fouls against Fikru were not given. We do not understand why these decisions go against us since the beginning of the league,” he added.
The Spaniard also believed that ATK’s marquee player Luis Garcia lacks fitness to play three games a week and hence did not start in the match against the Dynamos.
“He did warm up (before the start of the game) and at half time. But after the substitution of (Biswajit) Saha, I had to change the plans,” he added.
On the left back’s injury he added that Saha had a little twist in the ankle but would be fine soon.
Third-placed Kolkata will be travelling to Navi Mumbai for their next fixture December 7.
