SC East Bengal head coach Mario Rivera was disappointed as his team failed to finish their campaign with a win following a 1-0 defeat against Bengaluru FC in Match 107 of the Hero Indian Super League (ISL) at the Tilak Maidan Stadium, Vasco da Gama, Goa on Saturday.

Sunil Chhetri’s solitary strike (24’) proved to be the difference, bagging three points for the Blues in the final fixture of their Hero ISL 2021-22 campaign.

The result meant that the Kolkata-based club finished the season at the bottom of the points table, with only one win in 20 matches. On the other hand, Bengaluru FC finished in sixth place as they secured 29 points overall.
Rivera addressed the media after the game in the post-match press conference.

Here are some excerpts from his press conference:

Do you think it was a close result?

Yes, it was a very equal match. The things that happen in the box are the important things. We couldn’t score and they scored easily. If you don’t control and play better in the box area then you cannot win.

Antonio Perosevic started the match, but had to go out due to injury. Ananta Tamang and Subha Ghosh were also in the starting eleven. So, what made you choose these people today?

Yeah, we've had some players injured. We wanted to use different players. Ananta and Subha played very well. Also, Perosevic was playing well but he got injured. But we wanted to control the match and we tried to get the ball. In the first half, they pressed a lot and they are a very good team while defending and we couldn't (score).

How has it been for you at SC East Bengal?

We have many good things to keep. The team tried to be competitive, they played well and created many chances. There are many good things to keep, many positive things. But for us, it's a season to forget and we played poorly inside the box that's all.