Northeast United FC interim coach Khalid Jamil asserted that he is very proud of his players, in spite of the loss to ATK-Mohun Bagan in the second-leg of the semi-final, last Tuesday evening. With the season over, the management is yet to decide whether Khalid Jamil would be retained.
Khalid Jamil staged an unforgettable comeback after he was appointed as the interim coach of Northeast United FC, having won six matches and drawn three to make it to the top-four. While their resistance in the first leg of the semi-finals against ATK-Mohun Bagan was laudable, the ‘Highlanders’ fell short in the return leg, having lost 1-2 and crashed out of the tournament. In spite of the loss, there’s no reason why the ISL side should be ashamed of, and Khalid Jamil was all praise for his players for the hard work they put in.
“In the first half, they (Bagan) played very well. I think it was a miscommunication between the players. But then we went into the dressing room and solved the problem. Second-half we played better, got the chances. But I’m proud of the players, they worked very hard,” said Khalid Jamil, during the post-match press conference.
This has been an excellent season for Northeast United FC in general, having finished in the third position in the group stage – their best ever – with an Indian coach at the driver’s seat. Khalid Jamil, a former I-League winning coach with Aizawl FC, feels that Indian coaches should be given opportunities to prove themselves.
“As I said you must give confidence to Indian coaches because foreign coaches are good. But Indian coaches are also capable. They only need a chance and can prove themselves,” urged Jamil.
