Indian Super League side Odisha FC said on Monday they are appalled at the comments made by head coach Stuart Baxter where he made a remark about rape to talk about refereeing in the post-match interview after the team lost 1-0 against Jamshedpur FC.

Baxter, the 67-year-old coach from England, was questioning a decision made against his side in his post-match interview with official broadcasters Star Sports.

“I have to say, you need decisions to go your way and I don’t know what we have to do get a penalty. One of my players would have to rape or get raped in the box to get a penalty,” he was heard saying in the interview.

The club apologised for the remarks after the match in a statement: “The Club is appalled at the comments made by Head Coach, Stuart Baxter during the post-match interview today. It is completely unacceptable whatever the context and does not reflect the values of the club. We, at Odisha FC, unreservedly apologize and the club management will handle this matter internally.”

Mohammad Mobashir Rahman’s first half strike helped Jamshedpur FC record a morale-boosting 1-0 win over Odisha FC. He scored a 41st-minute goal which proved to be the difference between the two sides, ending JFC’s five-game winless streak and keeping their playoff hopes alive.

Poor passing in the final third saw them lose possession and hardly test the keeper. At the other end, Singh kept his side in the game with yet another save to deny Choudhary. Odisha had a late penalty claim when Diego Mauricio was tripped in the area by TP Rehenesh but the referee turned down the appeal.

In another media interaction after the match, Baxter said he wished refereeing decisions go his team’s way but did not make the remarks he did during the broadcaster’s interview.

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