IND 2-0 MNG highlights; Intercontinental Cup: Chhangte, Sahal on the scoresheet as India opens campaign with win against Mongolia

Goals by Lallianzuala Chhangte and Sahal Abdul Samad guide India to a 2-0 win against Mongolia in its opening match of the 2023 Intercontinental Cup.

Booking: Sandesh Jhingan sees a yellow late in the match.

Mongolia has done well to keep India at bay in the second-half. A win is almost certain for the Blue Tigers but they would have surely wanted more.

Five minutes added at the end of the second-half!

Chhangte goes for a shot with his favourite left foot but could not make a proper connection with the ball.

Mongolia sub: Sodmunkh comes for the last five minutes and additional time.

Thapa with an excellent cross inside the box from a freekick. Rohit Kumar does well to connect with the ball with a header, but hits the woodwork- agonisingly close to getting his first goal for India.

Chhangte delivers a good cross to Thapa, who had made the run at the near-post. Thapa sticks as boot out to get some sort of touch but cannot reach the ball.

Booking: Second-half substitute Rohit is shown a yellow card.

Play has resumed!!

The game eneters its last quarter and the teams break for a cooling break.

Poojary’s ball finds Mahesh in a dangerous position. But, the latter could not control the ball as it went under him. The chance goes begging.

It is a good attacking move from India. Mahesh clips in a clever ball inside the box, with Rahim Ali waiting. But the Mongolian defence does well to deal with the danger.

India subs: IN- Rahim Ali, Jeakson OUT- Chhetri, Apuia

Mongolia subs: IN- Munkh-Erdene, Gantogtokh

Thapa had a chance to deliver a threatening cross inside the box from a freekick. But, in the end, it was a poor cross. The ball was high and misses everyone in its flight.

Mahesh involving himself in the attack as he delivers a low cross inside the box from the left. However, his cross did not find a Blue shirt.

Chhangte is played a good ball by Poojary. Chhangte drives a cross inside the box, which is met by a Thapa header. But, the effort is not on target.

India subs: IN- Mahesh, Rohit OUT- Udanta, Sahal

Sahal finds Udanta with a nice flick. Udanta makes his way inside the box and takes a shot at goal. But, it is a disappointing effort by the winger as the ball sails above the crossbar.

Chhangte makes a good cross inside the box and Thapa puts the ball inside the net. But the goal does not count as Chhangte is flagged offside.

The tempo has gone down a notch in the second-half compared to the first. The humid conditions might be a reason for it. Despite sharing a commfortable lead, the Blue Tigers would surely like to score more goals.

India stitches a wonderful move with some one-touch passing football. Chhnagte has time and space to find a teammate. He tries to find Chhetri but his pass is intercepted.

Mongolia sub: Bat-Erdene comes on as a half-time sub.

The second-half kicks-off with India enjoying a 2-0 lead against Mongolia.

Goals by Sahal and Chhangte keep India in a 2-0 lead at the break.

A bal is played ove the top as Sahal makes a late run. He timed his run to remain onside but the Mongolian keeper comes out and clears the ball.

It doesnt’t look like either team is trying too hard to go for a goal in these late minutes of the first-half. India keeping the ball comfortably.

Four minutes added at the end of the first-half.

Udanta needs to start timing his runs better. He has already been flagged a couple of times for making his runs too early on the right flank.

Akash swings a cross inside the box from the left. Chhetri brings down the ball and sets up Sahal for the shot. Sahal goes for goal but his effort misses the target.

Batmunkh breaks away from the Indian backline and gets at the end of a longball. He controls the ball with a wonderful first touch but is dispossessed after a tackle by Anwar Ali.

Ar first, it seemed like a wonderful challenge but the replay showed that he had got nothing on the ball. Ali is lucky to get away with that.

Play resumes after the cooling break.

The heat and humidity is definitely playing a part in the proceedings. It is visible among the players.

A momentary halt in play for the teams to take a cooling break. It has been a good outing for the Blue Tigers till now. But Stimac’s men would surely look for more goals.

Mongolia is getting inside the right places, but is not being able to penetrate the Indian defence. The Blue Tigers look compact at the back till now.

Udanta makes a darting run down the right flank. He tries to cross the ball inside the box, but Munkh-Orgil makes the block.

Akash pings a cross inside the box from the left. There were three Indian players waiting inside the box, but the slighest touch from a Mongolia defender takes the ball away.

Sahal shows his vision by threading a through ball to Chhangte, who makes a run inside the box. The latter almost gets to the ball but the Mongolian keeper does well to rush off his line and thwart the danger.

Udanta goes down inside the box after a challenge by Dulguun. There is a huge penalty shout from the Indian players but the referee asks Udanta to get up and get on with the game.

GOOOALL!! CHHANGTE DOUBLES INDIA’S LEAD!! It all started from a corner. Sandesh Jhingan’s header was blocked but Mongolia could not clear its lines. Chhangte is the quickest to react inside the crowded box and blasts the ball inside the net from point-blank distance.

Udanta finds Poojary, who had made an overlapping run inside the box. Poojary sends the ball to Apuia, with a reverse pass. Apuia takes a shot at goal but it is high and wide.

Sahal tries to find Chhangte with a weighted-through ball. But, the pass is slightly heavy and the Mongolian keeper gets to the ball before Chhangte.

It has been all India inside the opening five minutes. The Blue Tigers making use of the whole pitch by involving their wingers. The Mongolian defence is pegged back at the moment.

GOOOALL!! SAHAL OPENS THE SCORING THE THE BLUE TIGERS!! Anirudh Thapa delivers a good low cross from the right. Mongolia keeper Enkhtaivan gets a touch but cannot hold on to the ball. The rebound falls to Sahal, who lashes the ball inside the net.

Udanta uses full use of his pace to win a corner for his team in the opening minute of the match.

The match between India and Mongolia is underway at the Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneshwar.

Both teams observed a minute’s silence for the lives lost in the Odisha train tragedy prior to kick-off.

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When does the the Intercontinental cup tie between India and Mongolia start?

The Intercontinental Cup tie between India and Mongolia will start at 7.30 pm IST at the Kalinga stadium in Bhubaneswar.

Where can I watch the Intercontinental cup tie between India and Mongolia?

The Intercontinental Cup tie between India and Mongolia can be live streamed on Disney+ Hotstar and Jio TV.

Live telecast of Intercontinental Cup football matches will be available on the Star Sports 2 and Star Sports 2 HD TV channels in India.

The Indian senior national men’s football team will take on Mongolia on the opening day to restart its quest to regain the crown in the Intercontinental Cup, which gets underway here at the Kalinga Stadium on Friday.

The invitational tournament hosted by India, which saw its first edition in Mumbai in 2018, is an opportunity for the national side to test its preparedness ahead of the continental and world competitions.

India won the inaugural edition before it lost the crown in the next edition when DPR Korea became the champion in 2019.