Welcome to Sportstar's highlights of the India vs Cambodia AFC Asian Cup qualifier Group D match being played at the Salt Lake (VYBK) Stadium in Kolkata, India.
This was Aneesh Dey bringing you the pre-match buildup and live updates of the match.
That's all for today. Thanks for tuning in. Goodnight and take care.
MATCH REPORT: AFC Asian Cup qualifiers: Chhetri brace leads India to 2-0 win over Cambodia
Post-match comments!
Full time!! (India 2-0 Cambodia)
AND ITS OVER AT SALT LAKE!! Super Sunil Chhetri does the job yet again with a brace. India wins it first home match under Igor Stimac.
90+1' Shot- Glan's shot takes a deflection and goes out for a corner.
Three added minutes!
90' Boris of Cambodia almost putting the ball inside his own net after trying to clear a cross but the alert Cambodian keeper Hul catches the ball just in time.
89' Anwar's lonf distance effort is disappointing. We all know he is capable of finding the net from distance but this time, the shot is not on target.
88' Liston seems to have taken a knock and is hobbling off the pitch right now. Hopefully it just a bout of cramp and nothing else.
87' Chance- A brilliant run by Aashique as a sudden burst of pace takes him past three Cambodian players. However, the keeper does brilliantly to save Aashique's shot from point-blank range.
85' Shot- Sahal with a shot from distance this time. It is not on target but not the worst effort from the Kerala Blasters player.
85' Udanta goes past his man with a couple of stepovers and tries to find Liston with his chipped lob. The Cambodia defence deals with the situation.
81' Cambodia with a good chance to counter. Sahal is beaten and Jhingan is the last man in defence. However, the move breaks down with a horrible final pass which goes straight to Jhingan.
80' Sahal's cross finds Glan but the latter's header takes a deflection and goes out for a corner.
80' Cambodia Sub:IN- Ean Pisey OUT- In Sodavid.
79' Mat Noron brings down Liston Colaco and it is a freekick for India. Sahal standing over it.
78' Shot- Glan Martins breaks the monotony with a shot from distance but he gets it horribly wrong. It is nowhere near the goal.
75' The Blue Tigers content with knocking the ball around the part at the moment. Cambodia players are not pressing. The fans however, are not happy with the dormant style of football India is playing at the moment.
73' Cambodia Sub: IN- Sin Sovannmakara OUT- Orn Chanpolin.
73' India Sub: IN- Pritam Kotal OUT- Roshan Singh.
72' Roshan Singh has taken a knock and is down on the ground. Doesn't look good for him. He will most likely be replaced.
68' The crowd on its feet as Sunil Chhetri leaves the pitch. He has done his bit today safe to say. But knowing him, a part of him wanted to stay to clinch the hat-trick.
68' India Subs: IN- Aashique Kuruniyan and Glan Martins OUT- Sunil Chhetri and Brandon Fernandes.
66' Akash Mishra with a bursting run down the flanks. He tries to square the ball to Chhetri but the Cambodian defence deals with the defence just in time.
63' Cambodia Subs: IN- Chou Sinti and Mat Noron OUT- Sos Suhana and Keo Sokpheng.
61' Shot- Brandon's long distance shot kisses the roof of the net and goes out of play. That is a good effort by the creator of Chhetri's second goal.
59' GOOOOAAALLLLL!!!! INDIA SCORED!!! CHHETRI ADDS TO THE SCORELINE!! Brandon with a brilliant inswinging cross from the left flank finds Chhetri's head. Chhetri meets it wells and places it sweetly inside the net past the keeper for his brace.
58' Liston Colaco goes for goal from distance again like he so often does, but his effort balloons over the goal. A disappointing effort.
57' Roshan's left-footed attempt takes a deflection and goes out of play for an Indian corner.
56' Udanta tries to get to the through ball directed to him. He made a good run but honestly, it wasn't a good pass.
53' Jhingan seems to have caught Chanthea as the latter is down on the gound clutching his neck.
50' Chance- Brandon with a quality ball inside the box directed at Chhetri. Chhetri gets his head to it but cannot keep his effort on target.
49' Roshan Singh's attemped cross takes a touch and goes out for an Indian corner.
46' Cambodia starting the second half well- a significant change in pace and intent from the first half. It already had a shot on goal early on in the second half.
46' India HT Subs: IN- Sahal Abdul Samad and Udanta Singh OUT- Anirudh Thapa and Manvir Singh
We are back for the second half!
Half time ! (India 1-0 Cambodia)
45+1' Sokpheng gets the ball over the wall but his shot is straight at Gurpreet who does well to hold on to it.
45+1' Gurpreet arranging his wall.
45+1' Roshan Singh with an unnecessary challenge on Sokpheng and it is a freekick for Cambodia in a very dangerous area. It is right on the edge of the penalty box.
One added minute!
45' Liston tries to find an overlapping Akash with a through ball but his pass is intercepted.
42' Liston with a wonderful tackle to win the ball and the crowd shows appreciation with a deafening roar.
42' Akash Mishra with a shot out of nowhere. It is straight at the keeper who parries it out of play. An impressive shot from distance considering Mishra shot with his weak foot.
39' The Indians with the lion's share of the possession right now but finding an opening in Cambodia's low-block is easier said than done.
37' Nothing came from the pressure. India seems to have got its shape back.
36' A sight for sore Camdodian eyes - a rare occurence in the match till now, the Cambodia players are now flooding India's half with its players and it is Igot Stimac's men who are tracking back right now.
35' Cambodia's main problem has been pass accuracy and ball retention. Whenever it wins the bal from the Blue Tigers, a loose pass follows which gives the ball back to India.
34' Liston sets up Brandon for the shot and the latter obliges with one from distance. Brandon connectrs well but his low-shot is straight at the keeper.
32' Akash Mishra with a wonderful low cross from the left flank. Thapa lets the ball go for Chhetri but the latter could not get a decent connection with the ball as it bobbles in front of his feet. On another day, it could have been a different story.
31' Booking- Sunil Chhetri is shown yellow for his challenge on Chanchav.
29' It is all India right now - the Cambodians are not finding any outlet out of the continuous Indian pressure.
27' The corner is a good one but Gurpreet comes out and punches the ball away from danger.
27' Thapa wins the ball well in the middle of the park and sets Colaco on the run with an accurate pass. Colaco tries to square the ball from the left flank but his cross is blocked for an Indian corner.
24' Shot- Roshan Singh cuts in and shoots with his left again. He has been trying a curler all evening and like his previous efforts, this one too, does not trouble the keeper.
22' Chance- Roshan Singh's pinpoint cross finds Chhetri's head but the Indian skipper cannot guide the ball on target. His effort goes above Cambodia's goal.
21' Suresh with a tactical foul on Sokpheng and it is a Cambodia freekick.
18' Shot- Liston shoots from miles out but it takes a deflection and meekly rolls to Cambodia keeper, Hul.
16' India is piling on the pressure right now- Cambodia knows it can't afford to just sit back like it was before conceding the goal.
13' GOOOAAAALLLL!!! SUNIL CHHETRI CONVERTS!!! The skipper looks up, takes a short run-up and lashes the ball in the bottom right corner of the keeper.
12' PENALTY!!! LISTON IS BROUGHT DOWN INSIDE THE BOX BY BORIS!!
11' Shot- Roshan Singh with another shot from an ambitious distance. It is nowhere near the goal as the ball sails out of play.
8' Shot- Brandon with a venomous shot from distance but Cambodia keeper Hul catches it fairly easily.
6' A mixup between Colaco and Mishra as the ball is given away cheaply for a Cambodia goalkick.
5' Booking- India's Sandesh Jhingan is the first player to be shown yellow.
UPDATE: Why the delay in kick-off?
4' Cambodia's freekick is straight at Gurpreet and it is an easy catch for Gurpreet.
3' Sandesh brings down Chanpolin and it is a Cambodia freekick in a dangerous area.
2' Akash Mishra sends a cross inside the box but it is collected by the keeper.
2' Shot- Roshan Singh curls a shot from distance but it is straight at the keeper.
1' A lively start by India - Liston with an early shot on goal but it is blocked.
1' KICK-OFF!!
8:30 pm: AND WE ARE UNDERWAY!!
8:32 pm: Cambodia's national anthem rings around the ground. Moments away from kickoff.
8:28 pm: There seems to be a technical difficulty. Cambodia players and staff are still waiting for their national anthem to be played.
8:26 pm: Both teams will now sing their respective national anthems.
8:15 pm: Form guide for both teams!
India comes into the match after three consecutive losses -- all of them coming in friendlies, with its last competitive match ending in favour of India, with the team lifting the SAFF Championship in October last year.
Cambodia, on the other hand, has played 18 matches in its last three years, winning 11, losing two and drawing the remaining five matches. Its heaviest defeat came against Asian heavyweight Iran, with a score line of 14-0.
It comes into the match with two wins in its previous five matches.
8:00 pm: Live from the venue!
7:45 pm: Head-to-Head!
India and Cambodia have met four times before with the latest meeting coming just over five years ago in an international friendly, when India came out victorious with a 3-2 win.
The biggest win, however, remains the Nehru Cup clash where Chhetri scored a brace as India beat Cambodia 6-0, eventually going on to win the tournament that year.
- September 2, 1964 — Cambodia 0-4 India (Merdeka Tournament)
- July 29, 1967 — India 1-3 Cambodia (AFC Asian Cup)
- August 17, 2007 — India 6-0 Cambodia (Nehru Cup)
- March 22, 2017 — Cambodia 2-3 aIndian (International Friendly)
7:33 pm: STARTING LINEUPS ARE OUT!!
India Starting XI: Gurpreet (GK), Jhingan, Mishra, Anwar, Roshan, Thapa, Brandon, Colaco, Suresh, Chhetri (C), Manvir.
Coach: Igor Stimac
Cambodia Starting XI: Hul Kimhuy (GK), Ken Chansopheak, Visal (C), Chanchav, Boris, Bin, Chanpolin, Suhana, Sodavid, Chanthea, Sokpheng
Coach: Ryu Hirose and Keisuke Honda
7:15 pm: Our Predicted Lineups for tonight's match!
MATCH PREVIEW
The Indian senior men’s football team will be looking to accomplish a record of making successive appearances in the final stage of the continental competition, AFC Asian Cup, as it plays host to the decisive leg of the qualifiers (group D) at the Salt Lake Stadium.
The first round of the group league action starting on Wednesday will see India starting favourite against South East Asian neighbour Cambodia while the other match of the day will be pitting the remaining two sides in the group – Afghanistan and Hong Kong.
The Indian aspirations hinge on the confidence of it being the highest-ranked team (currently at 106) among the four contenders in the group. This will be backed by huge home support as the organisers indicated a sell-out crowd of more than 50,000 for the first round of action.
READ: From Colaco to Pandita, five young players to watch out for in the Indian football team
"We are expecting the fans to come in numbers, to support the national team in the best way possible. We intend to press from the start, and play at high intensity. We need to control the game and prove that we are the favourites. I have to say we are ready for that,” the Indian head coach Igor Stimac set the tone for the upcoming action. India previously played the final stage of the Asian Cup in 2019 but could not progress beyond the group stage.
The Indian squad this time is a mix of youth and experience selected on the basis of performances assessed in the recently concluded Indian Super League. The Indian challenge will be led by its long-standing captain Sunil Chhetri, who will be hoping to make this his third qualification to the final stage in a little over a decade.
The 37-year-old striker, who has won an incomparable 126 caps for the country, is expected to inspire the side that has names like Sandesh Jhingan, Pritam Kotal, Subhasish Bose, Akash Mishra in defence, Jeakson Singh, Liston Colaco, Udanta Singh, Anirudh Thapa in the midfield and Ishan Pandita and Manvir Singh in the attack.
READ: Liston Colaco: We can surely achieve greater things for the national team
Rahul Bheke, a regular choice in the backline, will be missing the first round owing to injury. “In our current state we are the favourites of this group, we are in a good position and I hope we can qualify,” Stimac said.
Cambodia (currently ranked 171), which has the Japan and AC Milan star Keisuke Honda as the general manager, is hoping to surprise the host and pick up some points in the first match. “It does not matter where we are playing and whom we are playing. We will be giving our best,” said its Japanese coach Hirose Ryu.
Squads
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