ISL: "We made things too easy for Jamshedpur," says Odisha FC head coach Kiko Ramirez

Odisha FC suffered their second loss of the Indian Super League 2021-22 season as they went down 4-0 to Jamshedpur FC at the Tilak Maidan Stadium in Vasco, Goa on Tuesday.

The Kalinga Warriors found themselves 4-0 down inside the opening 35 minutes thanks to Greg Stewart's stunning hat-trick and Peter Hartley's goal in the third minute. Stewart scored three stunning goals as he became the first player to register a hattrick this season. Odisha tried to reduce the margin in the second half but the Men of Steel stood like a wall against them.

Kiko Ramirez took responsibility for the defeat and apologize to the fans as he addressed the media in the post-match press conference. Here is what he said:

If they made it easy for Jamshedpur in the first half

Odisha were largely the second-best team throughout the game against a team that suffered a big loss in their last game. All the damages were done in the first half through a heroic performance from Greg Stewart. Kiko Ramirez felt that they were blown away before they could settle themselves in the game.

"As everyone could see, we made things too easy for Jamshedpur FC. In the first half, the four goals that we conceded were really easy for them to score," opined Kiko.

On team selection

The Spanish tactician next discussed his team selection and feels he made some mistakes there. He took all the responsibility for the defeat and pointed out what exactly went wrong for them.

Message to the players at half-time

The coach revealed what he told his players during the halftime break and how he tried to motivate them after a horrendous performance in the opening half.

"I asked them to start the second half thinking it was 0-0 and try to keep their heads up. But unfortunately, we couldn't score any goals in the second half. From now on we should start preparing for the next match," asserted the manager.

Positives to take from this game

The Kalinga Warriors were totally outclassed by the Men of Steel and couldn't play up to their own level. When asked about the positives to take from this game he replied, "The best thing about football is that you get another chance."

"We play again on Saturday and we need to prepare for that game. We will take whatever good things we did today and try to be ready for the next match. And on behalf of everyone, I apologise to all the fans for today's performance," the boss concluded.

Odisha FC will be in action on Saturday when they face Chennaiyin FC at the Tilak Maidan Stadium.