Kerala Blasters continued their poor form on the road in the sixth edition of the Indian Super League (ISL) after their goalless draw against NorthEast United, on Friday.
Assistant coach Ishfaq Ahmed claimed that the southerners did not expect many chances owing to the Highlanders' style of play while terming the result as a fair one.
"We did everything according to our plan. We know that they play very compact. If you see their previous matches against ATK or Mumbai (City) they only lost by 1-0 and they had a few chances that could have changed the result," he pointed out.
"We knew that there would be only a few chances against them and we should have capitalised on them. In the end, I think it's a fair result. Sometimes in away matches, you have to take what you get and concentrate on the next match."
Kerala had to do without Raphael Messi Bouli who was suspended for the tie and Ahmed admitted that the Cameroonian was the missing link.
"We definitely missed him. His physical presence is always a big worry for defenders but there are other players and they need to do the job," he said.
ISL
Asked to comment on the progress report of Sahal Abdul Samad, the former Mohun Bagan midfielder replied, "I'm very happy that he got that physical part in the game today (Friday).
"He was chasing the ball. People were only talking about him being very skillful but I think coach (Eelco Schattorie) wanted that physical part in him. So hats of to him for working really hard to become a better player. I have no doubt that he will be one of the best in the future for the country," he elaborated.
Kerala conceded 12 goals in their previous three games but Ahmed was comparatively pleased with the backline's performance.
"If you see, two to three of our chances came from perfect diagonal balls from our defense. They hardly had any shots on target in the first half. It was a lapse of concentration that they got one chance when Nikhil Kadam was through but that's why goalkeepers are there. Bilal (Khan) made a fantastic save," he signed out.
