SC East Bengal had to battle hard to secure a 2-2 draw against Chennaiyin FC in the 39th match of the ongoing ISL at the Tilak Maidan Stadium on Saturday. Lallianzuala Chhangte gave the lead to Chennaiyin FC in the 13th minute after an assist from Jakub Sylvestr.

However, SC East Bengal equalized when Germany’s Matti Steinmann scored a cracking header in the 59th minute from the corner. Chennaiyin FC once again took the lead in the 64th minute when Jakub Sylestr provided his second assist of the match to Rahim Ali, who made a fine finish.

Subsequently, Marine Machans’ lead could only last five minutes when Matti Steinmann scored his second goal, once again from the corner. SC East Bengal head coach Robbie Fowler was satisfied with his team’s performance and stated that his side showed a lot of fight against a top team.

“If you see the way we played in the first half, there were a lot of things that were satisfying,” Fowler said at the post-match press conference. 

“In terms of the way the game went, it was important that we didn’t lose and our lads showed a lot of fight because this was a game that we didn’t deserve to lose. In the second half, we upped the tempo and the desire and attitude towards the game. At times, we looked good going forward,” he added.

Meanwhile, it hasn’t been an ideal season for SC East Bengal as they are yet to savour their maiden win in the season. The club has played seven matches so far and they have drawn three matches whereas they have lost four. Fowler added that the team has shown improvement and they are slowly getting into their groove.

“We are trying and giving our everything. At times we are a little bit hesitant while defending. We have shown that we can score goals. We’re not a million miles away from where we need to be,” said the Englishman. 

SC East Bengal will next lock horns against Odisha FC at Tilak Maidan Stadium on 3rd of January.