Bulgaria 1-1 Republic of Ireland: 'We never surrendered belief' - Stephen Kenny
- Published
Stephen Kenny said his side "never would have deserved to lose that game".
Stephen Kenny felt his Republic of Ireland side's last-gasp 1-1 draw in Bulgaria was the least they deserved in his first match in charge.
Shane Duffy's injury-time header rescued a point for new boss Kenny in the Nations League opener in Sofia.
"We never surrendered belief, we kept doing the right things and we deserved the equaliser," Kenny told Sky Sports.
"We never would have deserved to lose that game, absolutely not. We could have won if we had taken our chances."
While Kenny's demeanour after the game suggested some disappointment at the result, he said it could prove "a point gained" in the context of the Nations League campaign which continues with Sunday's game against Finland in Dublin.
"We had good passages of play, created some good chances but Bulgaria caught us on the counter-attack a few times as well," added the Republic boss.
"There was a lot of good play in the game but also areas where we will need to improve."
Republic of Ireland skipper Duffy, a central character in the contest after appearing to be at fault for Bozhidar Kraev's goal before heading the injury-time equaliser, said the players were "disappointed with the game and the result".
Duffy described his headed goal as a "bittersweet moment" after allowing Kraev to drift into between him and central defensive partner John Egan in the 56th minute before beating Darren Randolph for the home side's goal.
"I'll take the blame for it [Bulgaria's goal] myself," confessed Duffy, whose season-long loan from Brighton to Celtic was completed on Wednesday.
"It was sloppy defending and I didn't get in quick enough and they punished us.
"I haven't played a lot of football and it was tough to get going out there at times, so it's disappointing but hopefully I can put it behind me."