I should quit, says Bhowmick after loss to Bagan

After a 5-3 drubbing against arch-rivals Mohun Bagan, East Bengal coach Subhash Bhowmick said he should quit the job taking moral responsibility of the defeat.

"Being the coach of the side, the entire responsibility is mine. I should quit. Nobody in the team management has told me to leave," Bhowmick told reporters after the loss in their fourth round I-League encounter.

Bhowmick said he missed Bhaichung Bhutia who pulled out in the morning due to a hamstring pull.

"Things would have been different if Bhutia was there. But he could not play and we had to take a decision to omit him from the line-up," he said.

Asked whether Bhutia would be fit for their next match against Salgaocar on October 29, Bhowmick said, "We have to see. I cannot say about it right now."

Reflecting on their loss, Bhowmick said, "It was a setback for me but it happens in a match. This is one of the sad days of my life."

Mohun Bagan might have avenged their 0-5 IFA Shield loss in 1975, but Bhowmick said East Bengal had won by a five-goal margin that time. "They won by a two-goal margin. So it was just another loss. We made some mistakes so we had to pay for it. But I don't see this as the darkest day of my career," Bhowmick said.

The East Bengal coach said his team would bounce back strongly in their nest match.

"I have full faith in the players and the boys will be back in the reckoning soon," Bhowmick said.