Santosh Kashyap finally broke his silence and was vocal about the issue of Mumbai FC fans abusing him, and in the process did the uncalled thing by questioning the fans' upbringing.
He rubbished claims that he was close to getting the axe and instead blamed the media of being on a campaign against his team, which put up a toothless performance against DSK Shiavajians on Saturday, losing 5-0.
"There’s no problem (as of now), I believe. The management understands that I am putting my best and preparing (well) every match. The media is against me, the fans are against me but there is great support from the management. They understand the situation," claimed the head coach of the side rooted to the bottom of the I-League table.
Going on to speak about the fans who have made their displeasure with his management and their side's results clear, he said he expected better from them.
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"They started chanting positively but ended up negatively. This is my perception. They were cheering up, not me, but the players. Later on, it was the same old story.
"I know they are hurt. What I want to say to the fans is that I expect better from them. In the last match against Minerva Punjab, for full 90 minutes they were abusing me. I am also an employee here, and I am trying my best. The coach only isn’t responsible for the situation. The players, the staff, the management- everyone is equally responsible," said Kashyap, in an attempt to deflect blame.
Fan protests against the gaffer is nothing new in football, and even now the once-successful manager of Arsenal, Arsene Wenger, is under fire by his club's faithful. However, there is a way to respond to such protests, but Kashyap was graceless in the way he attributed the protests to the fans' 'education' and 'upbringing.'
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"I don’t expect them to protest this way. You must have a way to protest. They are abusing through the internet and also at the stadium. If they are uneducated and doing so, I can understand.
"But they are from good families so that’s disrespectful. I believe their upbringing is a problem. They should understand that you must respect everyone in this field. I am also trying my best," he concluded, sure to further incur the fans' wrath with these statements.
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