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Robbie Fowler’s East Bengal ended their first ISL campaign with a 6-5 loss to Odisha FC. It was the most significant match in ISL history.
East Bengalthe first season of Indian Super League (ISL) ended on a disappointing note on Saturday as Robbie fowlerThe men collapsed in a 6-5 loss to last-placed Odisha FC.
The result saw the Rouge et Or end their campaign in ninth place with just 17 points from 20 games.
“It’s disappointing how we finished. We wanted to win. But the focus and a poor start to the second half cost us the game,” said coach Robbie Fowler after the game.
East Bengal started their last game on the front foot and took a 2-1 lead at halftime.
Odisha, however, fought back in the second half and a brace each of Paul Ramfangzauva and Jerry Mawihmingthanga saw them go 6-3.
East Bengal managed to reduce the deficit to 6-5 with two late goals, but it wasn’t quite enough for them to avoid finding themselves on the wrong side of an unsavory ISL record. Welsh Aaron Amadi-Holloway scored two for the Kolkata Giants.
The 11-goal affair was the most successful game in ISL history, usurping Chennaiyin FC’s 6-3 win over Kerala Blasters FC in 2019-20 and FC Goa’s 5-4 win over Mumbai City FC during the 2016 season.
It was also only the fifth time a team has conceded six or more goals in the ISL since its inception in 2014.
The season, however, had started with high expectations for Fowler’s Red and Golds.
East Bengal, celebrating their 100th anniversary in 2020, had made their transition to ISL – India’s largest club football competition – of League I.
The arrival of former Liverpool legend Robbie Fowler as the team’s head coach in the pre-season has raised the bar even further.
East Bengal’s grand ambitions for their first ISL, however, began to crumble as soon as the trials and tribulations began on the football field.
Fowler and Co. have failed to deliver the results they expected this season and only managed three wins, eight draws and nine losses in their first ISL campaign.
The team ended up conceding 33 goals while scoring just 22 – the third-worst defensive and offensive records in the league, respectively.
The bitter end was only made worse by Mohun Bagan’s success this season.
The Mariners, who merged with ATK to form ATK Mohun Bagan, have had a stellar season and are the favorites to finish top of the league and clinch a spot in the AFC Champions League.
East Bengal also lost their two highly anticipated Kolkata Derbies to ATK Mohun Bagan, who are sure to smear what has been an offensive season for the legacy club.
There have been very few bright sparks for reds and golds this season, with the most notable coming from Illuminated enobakharethe wonderful goals of. But at the end of the day, they were too few and far between.
Robbie Fowler, however, remained optimistic and revealed that preparations to put things back in order next season are already underway.
“Planning has already started. As soon as the season is over, we automatically start planning for next season. We just haven’t had enough time this year in terms of preparation.
“With the right recruitment and the right schedule on the training grounds, and with my ideas and methods of how we want to play, we can do better,” Fowler concluded.
It will be interesting to see if the East Bengal management keep Fowler – who had been a divisive figure among fans – for next season and if he stays, whether the Britain coach can deliver on his promise for next season.
Main photo: ISL Media
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