Chennaiyin FC head coach Owen Coyle rued his side's missed chances in their 1-3 defeat against ATK in the Indian Super League summit clash that cost them a third title.
Chennaiyin failed to give their magical turnaround in this ISL the desired fairytale ending, and Coyle minced no words that his side played better than ATK in the final held here without spectators on Saturday due to COVID-19 pandemic.
"Goals change games. We had a few easy chances in initial phase but could not take them. No one should tell me they (ATK) were the better team. My disappointment is for how much my team put into the game. But ultimately if you don't take your chances, you give away soft goals," he said.
"We were the team that played all the football. To be fair to them they stuck to their task. They made it tough for us by banging the ball forward. The spoils went to ATK so all the very best to them. We were the team who kept pushing on, but they were clinical and we were not," Coyle added.
The 53-year-old Irish coach said ATK must be relieved to have won the final and the title given that Chhenaiyin had more possession and goal-scoring chances.
"We had almost 70% possession but ultimately if you don't take your chances, it will come back to haunt you. There were two things from our perspective. One, we were not clinical enough with our chances and second, I felt ATK's last two goals were certainly avoidable," he said.
"I think ATK will be very relieved to get away with the trophy given what we brought to the game. But that is how football is at the highest level."
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