The Blue Tigers did their job albeit in a slightly lackluster manner with Chhetri scoring both the goals in a 2-0 win which puts India on top of the group after the first round of games
Sunil Chhetri scored both the goals of the evening to help India beat Cambodia 2-0. Twitter/@IndianFootball
After bearing the brunt of fans across the country for the pre-match ticketing fiasco, the All India Football Federation (AIFF) would have been forgiven for thinking that the worst was behind them for the time being as India kicked off their Group D campaign of the AFC Asian Cup 2023 final round qualifiers against Cambodia at the Vivekananda Yuba Bharati Krirangan (VYBK).
But even before a ball was kicked on the evening of Wednesday, 8 June, there was another episode of public humiliation. The stadium operations team played the Indian national anthem after announcing the Cambodian one and then failed to play that of the visiting side for about five minutes during which skipper Sunil Chhetri appeared to apologise to his Cambodian counterpart.
On the field however, the Blue Tigers did their job albeit in a slightly lackluster manner with Chhetri scoring both the goals in a 2-0 win which puts them on top of the group after the first round of games. The performance was definitely not pleasing to the eyes but the results are what matter at this stage and head coach Igor Stimac will be quietly pleased with the three points.
India lined up in an offensive looking 4-3-3 formation with a young backline marshalled by Sandesh Jhingan.
Sandesh Jhingan steals the ball away from a Cambodian player during the match. Twitter/@IndianFootball
Partnering him in defence was Anwar Ali, while Naorem Roshan Singh and Akash Mishra took up the full-back positions. Without the presence of a specialist defensive midfielder, Anirudh Thapa and Suresh Singh Wangjam took up the two central positions in the middle of the park as Brandon Fernandes was given a roaming playmaker role on the left. Liston Colaco and Manvir Singh flanked Sunil Chhetri up front.
As expected, the Blue Tigers dominated possession and looked to weaponise their flanks through Roshan and Mishra to allow Liston and Manvir to cut in. The first goal did indeed come through Liston who dribbled his way into the penalty area and was met by a strong challenge, which the referee deemed unfair. Chhetri duly converted the spot kick and the roof duly came off a 26,118-strong crowd at the VYBK.
Thereafter, it was a game of attack vs defence as the Cambodians, sitting deep in their 5-3-2 shape, seemed content to soak up the pressure. Their two low blocks of five and three made it extremely difficult for India to find a penetrating pass and create chances. Even with the likes of Brandon and Thapa constantly probing for an opening, there was just no way through.
That meant more use of the wings and in that regard, it was Liston and the two full-backs Mishra and Roshan, who saw a lot of the ball in the first half. They always made themselves available to receive the ball, but their dribbles and crosses into the box brought no joy due to a couple of reasons.
With Liston and Manvir often taking up wide positions outside the box, Chhetri was India’s only player in the Cambodian penalty area, outnumbered by two or three defenders who happily headed away Roshan and Mishra’s crosses. When the two did make a run into the box and cut it back, Chhetri was closer to the 6-yard-box and there were no late runners to get on the end of those cut-backs.
By the end of the first half, the tempo of the game had dropped drastically as the Blue Tigers were labouring to try and prise open the Cambodian backline. To remedy this, Stimac decided to introduce the pacy Udanta Singh and the skilful Sahal Abdul Samad in the second half. Udanta had more of an impact as his preference to stay wide rather than cut inside gave India an outlet down the right side.
Chhetri gave India some breathing room on the hour mark as he powerfully headed in Brandon’s cross from a short corner into the near post. A mixture of clever movement inside the box during attacking phases and an innate ability to head the ball has characterised much of the goals he has scored in his career and this was yet another one of those occasions.
Stimac decided to take Chhetri off and keep him fresh for the upcoming games against Afghanistan and Hong Kong and the slew of substitutions that followed did not help India’s cohesiveness towards the end of the game. Udanta switched to the left wing to accommodate substitute Ashique Kuruniyan on the right and the latter had a great chance to score a third but the Cambodian goalkeeper denied him.
Scoring twice and keeping a clean sheet will certainly boost morale among the Indian squad but they know trickier tests lie ahead and better performances all round will be needed, starting with Afghanistan on Saturday, 11 June. India’s north-western neighbours suffered a 1-2 defeat against Hong Kong and find themselves in a must-win situation to have any chance of qualifying for the AFC Asian Cup 2023.
They will certainly be more enterprising in attack than Cambodia, which should keep goalkeeper Gurpreet Singh Sandhu occupied after his leisurely evening at the VYBK on Wednesday. Stimac might recall Pritam Kotal and Subhashish Bose to the starting line-up in the full-back positions for their experience and more conservative approach. The addition of a defensive midfielder like Glan Martins or Jeakson Singh is also a possibility with India unlikely to dominate as much of the ball as they did against Cambodia.
For now, there are three points in the kitty and that is something to build on for the Blue Tigers as they aim to qualify for their successive AFC Asian Cup for the first time in history.
Read all the Latest News, Trending News, Cricket News, Bollywood News, India News and Entertainment News here. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.