Odisha FC head coach Josep Gombau said the small details made the difference as his side suffered a defeat in a tight-knitted contest against Hyderabad FC in the Hero Indian Super League (ISL) at the G.M.C Balayogi Athletic Stadium, in Hyderabad, on Saturday. Mohammad Yasir broke the deadlock early in the game, which sealed the win for Hyderabad FC.

The Juggernauts are placed in third position in the Hero ISL table, level on points with FC Goa. Gombau called for his side to improve from their mistakes and work on the postivies despite their second defeat of the season. The Spaniard further said that his team has lost two games on the road against two very good sides in Mumbai City FC and league leaders Hyderabad FC, which gives them the belief that they need to work on a consistent basis before close games start turning their way.

Here are the excerpts from Gombau’s press conference:

Your thoughts on the game?

It was a very equal game. Hyderabad FC are a very good side. In the first ten minutes, we started very slow and we conceded the goal. That’s what we need to work on, we need to start the game more focused. After that, I think it was a very equal game. We had our chances, we were pushing a little bit more because we want to score and get the result. During the last part of the second half, Hyderabad FC was more thinking of defending the lead and to attack. It was an equal game, like a lot of games in this league. There is not a big difference between the quality of teams in this league. The small details made the result go in their favour. In one action, we didn't defend well and conceded the goal. It was difficult for us to come back.

The team looked better in the second half after you made the changes, but it was close defeat. Any positives you want to take going into the next match?

For sure, every game that we play, we need to improve our mistakes. We need to work on the players and regular games. We found positives from this game that we need to work on.

The team is creating chances but finishing is lacking. Do you feel that the finishing should be better going forward?

We have played five games and have scored six goals, it’s surely something that can be better. We played three games at home and we won all the games. In two games that we lost, we played Mumbai City FC and Hyderabad FC in away matches - two really good teams. We need to be happy with the performance of the team. We need to keep working, not just in finishing, but in all departments. When a team wins, they win together and when the team loses, the team loses together.

You switched Diego Mauricio with Pedro Martin just after half-time. Was that a tactical switch or due to injury?

Both of the players started the week with some physical problems, because in the last game against Bengaluru FC, they finished with some physical issues. We wanted them to arrive in good shape for this game. As a coach, I didn't want to take any risk and avoid any injuries.I decided to give both of the players 45 minutes each, which they deserved to play. They both worked really well (in the trainings). They just started training three days ago and we wanted to share their minutes to avoid the risk of injury. I think they did well and this was the idea. Maybe in another moment, If I have both of them 100 percent physically fit, I would probably use them both on the field and make some changes at the back. Today, with the situation that we were in, it was better to use them for 45 minutes each.