Bengaluru FC relied on a late winner from Sunil Chhetri to pick up a crucial 2-1 victory over table-toppers FC Goa at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Goa on Thursday. Rahul Bheke and Brandon Fernandes got on the scoresheet for Bengaluru and Goa respectively in a fiery encounter. It was a tense affair between the two sides featuring red cards for Dimas Delgado and Mohamed Ali.

At the post-match conference, a jubilant Bengaluru head coach Carles Cuadrat spoke to the press about the important victory. “I am very happy because we know how difficult it is to win at Goa. We had a plan for the game and it was working well and then there were some circumstances that changed things. Two red cards changed everything. In the end, it was a question of the one who scores the second goal will be the one to win. We were clinical in that counter attack with Udanta Singh and Sunil Chhetri and we got the goal, so I am very happy,” he stated.

Speaking about the key absentees from the match – Miku and Erik Paartalu – Cuadrat conceded that he was not sure how long the pair will be out for. “We don’t really know for sure. It was something that happened suddenly. Miku had an ankle problem. With Erik, it was just a very unfortunate infection in the toe. He had to stop suddenly so I am not sure of the time of recovery for him,” he said.

When asked about Delgado’s red card incident, the Spaniard admitted that he was bemused with the decision but acknowledged the hard job referees face. “I made a gesture because I was shocked about the reason of the red card. But I think that the referees have a very difficult job and we have to help them. But sometimes they take the decisions because of the circumstances. So maybe in another moment of the game and without a red card for the other team, maybe he is only showing a yellow card in that situation,“ he answered.

Sergio Lobera was present from Goa’s end to answer the media’s questions. The Spaniard was disappointed with the final result and felt that his side deserved a draw on the night. “I think a draw would have been a fair result. But you know (what happens) when you commit mistakes in a game so equally balanced. Again, we conceded a goal from a corner yet again. And again, after having done all the hard yards from coming back and equalizing and having done within five minutes to concede a goal as such. A team like this will always cause damage,” Lobera remarked.

Click here to read the match report.