[caption id="attachment_23832" align="alignnone" width="865"]CtxjS-SUkAA3_TC ATK vs. Chennaiyin FC ends 2-2, Both the set of coaches content with teams' performance | Image : ISL[/caption] Kolkata : It all ended at two-goal-a-piece as the defending champions, Chennaiyin FC kick-started their 2016 Hero ISL campaign against Jose Molina’s Atletico de Kolkata here at the Rabindra Sarobar Stadium in the city of joy. After what one might say a considerably dull first half, the home side netted the first goal of the match only to lose it within the next ten minutes. Marco Materazzi’s Chennaiyin FC- soon- tightened the screws as the Super Machans took lead with less than twenty minutes to go. However, ATK’s Canadian goal-machine, Iain Hume pulled back one for the team as Sameehg Doutie who scored the first ATK goal of the season was tripped down in front of the sticks by Chennaiyin’s Jerry Lalrinzuala. “I am very happy with the performance of my team. I think we did a wonderful job and played really well throughout the 90 minutes of the match,” Jose Molina told the press after the game. “We were a bit unlucky to concede the goal but showed tremendous fighting spirit to come back into the match,” he added. The former Atletico Madrid goalkeeper seemed quite undisturbed about drawing the first match of the season despite leading by 1-0 at point of time. “To be honest, we cannot control the game. We were playing really well and at one stage the match was under our control but as I said, the second goal was an unlucky one. Jose Arroyo wanted to clear the ball and in the process it got deflected by him. Debjit (Majumder) had already dived in the intended direction of the ball and didn’t have enough time to recover from his position,” he added. Chennaiyin FC Head Coach, Marco Materazzi seemed quite happy to pick-up one vital away point against Atletico de Kolkata. “It was a good game. I am extremely satisfied with the boys because at one point we were losing by 1-0 but the entire team kept its composure to ensure that we don’t return to Chennai empty-handed.” When asked about his thoughts on the penalty decision, the Italian replied, “I was on the sidelines so it’s hard to tell whether that was actually a penalty or not. But if the referee said it’s a penalty, it’s a penalty. The only thing I regret is the footballer (Jerry Lalrinzuala) who conceded the penalty is a 19-year-old and conceded the same due to the lack of experience.” “I don’t think there is an added pressure because we are the defending champions. Actually, I’d rather have this kind of a pressure than be obsessed to win the tournament,” Marco Materazzi concluded the press conference. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=878aT4VIJAk

ISL 3: ATK vs. Chennaiyin FC ends 2-2, Both the set of coaches content with teams' performance