Calcutta: East Bengal coach Biswajit Bhattacharya resigned on Monday following the humiliating loss against Bengaluru FC the day before. Bhattacharya sent his resignation to club secretary Kalyan Majumdar through an email on Monday afternoon.

"I am taking responsibility for the team's insipid performance. We could have done better, but somehow that did not happen," Bhattacharya told The Telegraph from Bangalore.

"I have emailed my resignation. Now it is up to the club officials to decide," Bhattacharya added. Interestingly, he did not bother to inform the players about his decision. "We came to know from the media that he has quit. The team and the support staff came on the same flight and all through he did not tell us about his decision.

"At least, he could have called a meeting and tell us about the decision. I don't know why he kept us in the dark," a senior player said late on Monday evening. "When he was asked about our next practice session, he promptly said to call one on Wednesday," the player added.

Club secretary Majumdar said: "We have received an email from him. He does not want to continue as the coach."

Asked whether the resignation was accepted, Majumdar said: "We do not want to continue with someone who has lost interest."

According to sources, Bhattacharya did have a discussion with a senior club official on Sunday night after the defeat.

He was asked whether he would like to continue and Bhattacharya said it was up to the club to decide.

The official then in as many words told Bhattacharya that he could continue. But the coach had lost the players' confidence. Probably, that prompted him to send the email. Bhattacharya, who replaced Dutchman Eelco Schattorie in June last year, was never in control of things from the day he took charge. Agreed the club won the CFL for the record-equalling sixth consecutive time, but the simmering discontent among the players was always there.

And once East Bengal started faltering in the I-League, players started venting the frustration.

A former captain and senior pro had a run-in with him after the match versus Mumbai FC and it was not surprising that the same player promptly got a start against Bengaluru FC. Another senior footballer had a face-off with Bhattacharya after the Bengaluru FC match in the dressing room.

"Whatever he wanted was given by the club, but he was not able to make use of the players according to the situation," the club secretary said.

In the remaining two matches, assistant coaches Debjit Ghosh and Sanjay Majhi will call the shots.

A new coach will be selected before the Federation Cup, which is scheduled on May this year.

"We will sit together and discuss about the matter, but I can assure that the next coach will be appointed before the Federation Cup," a senior club official said on Monday evening.