East Bengal FC head coach Oscar Bruzon expressed pride in his team’s spirited comeback but acknowledged their struggles after a hard-fought 3-2 defeat to Mumbai City FC in the Indian Super League (ISL) on Monday.

In an electrifying encounter in Kolkata, Mumbai City FC took an early two-goal lead. East Bengal FC rallied in the second half to level the score, only for Nikolaos Karelis to deliver a late winner, securing crucial points for the Islanders.

This marked East Bengal FC’s eighth defeat of the season and their first after a three-game unbeaten streak, which included two wins. Reflecting on the match, Bruzon described it as a tale of two halves, highlighting the issues that led to their downfall.

“There were a lot of moments for both sides.. In the first half, we were completely exposed and Mumbai City FC were the best team on the pitch. And in the second half, it was the complete opposite. I think we deservedly came back and unfortunately, (for) one individual mistake, we lost again,” he said during the post-match press conference.

Bruzon elaborated on their tactical challenges, particularly in the central area of the pitch and the right flank, where his team struggled to cope with Mumbai City FC’s overlapping plays. He further praised his team’s effort in the second half, despite facing significant challenges with injuries and players playing out of position.

“Going more deep, technically, I feel that we are suffering a lot in the central area of the pitch. We cannot control the midfield. On the right side today, we were having a lot of problems. They knew very well how to make the overlaps on that side. We were not having help from the full-back. Our full-back was not confident and then same problem as always, we have some problems in the backline. Other teams started to make a lot of ready moves and catch our backs. This is what happened in the first half.”

He added: “In the second half, spirited performance. We played more with the heart than with the mind. I think that we pushed and created enough chances to make a comeback and draw the game. But if you analyse the players we played, Cleiton (Silva) on the right, (Naorem) Mahesh and Hector (Yuste) in the centre.. We have a lot of problems, a lot of injuries.. We have problems to complete the eleven. We have problems doing the substitutions and we are trying to use players that don’t play in their natural positions because we are lacking key players.”

The loss marked East Bengal FC's third home defeat under Bruzon. Despite a similar pattern of comeback attempts seen in their victory against Punjab FC, the team couldn’t hold on this time. Bruzon emphasised the need for better game management to improve their position in the standings.

“We are more of a reactive team. When we are punished, it is when it seems we play with an open heart but that’s enough to be on top of the table in this kind of league. We need to understand all the moments. Sometimes you are losing games. We are a much better team when we are losing and drawing games than when we are ahead. It’s something that we have to look at ourselves and improve because to win games, its not possible to win every time leading by scoring three or four goals,” he explained.

Bruzon also commended the unwavering support of the fans, who backed the team through the tough moments of the game.

“Today, they were unbelievable. They were cheering East Bengal FC even with 0-2 (down). They were on the side of the team even in the tough moments. They had this five or 10 minutes of joy when we drew the game but unfortunately, we could not give them the deserved win,” he said.